Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas finds himself in trouble yet again. But in a shocking twist, it actually has nothing to do with him this time. You’d think that with all the sandals and recusal requests on Thomas’ record that he’d try to run a tighter ship, but oh no.
His wife, Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, is the culprit of the latest controversy. She’s receiving backlash stemming from a private email exchange between her and the CEO of First Liberty Institute— a nonprofit Christian conservative organization based in Texas. And now, Democrats are asking the justice to recuse himself from cases involving the influential religious group.
According to ProPublica, Ginni privately praised First Liberty Institute for “fighting efforts to reform the nation’s highest court — efforts sparked, in large part, by her husband’s ethical lapses.” Last year, Thomas found himself in boiling water after being exposed for having shady financial ties to and secretly vacationing with a GOP billionaire.
In a July conference call recording obtained by ProPublica, First Liberty CEO Kelly Shackelford can be heard reading an email exchange between himself and Thomas’ wife. She wrote, “YOU GUYS HAVE FILLED THE SAILS OF MANY JUDGES,” seemingly praising the organization for opposing Supreme Court term limits and also enforcing an ethics code — which was in direct response to Thomas’ undisclosed dealings.
She continued in the email saying “CAN I JUST TELL YOU, THANK YOU SO, SO, SO MUCH.” These emails were meant to remain private, given they show an interesting bias towards First Liberty, but Shackelford didn’t mind reading them aloud, as he more than likely didn’t understand the consequences.
Since Ginni’s email was uncovered, Democrats are requesting her husband recuse himself from all further court cases involving First Liberty. Critics say the email is proof that Thomas and his wife both benefit from the group’s advocacy, presenting a cut and dry conflict of interest for the judge.
In response to this controversy, Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., called Ginni’s comments “deeply problematic.” He continued in a statement saying “She’s testified before Congress that she and Justice Thomas do not discuss each other’s work. That defense now rings hollow.”
Durbin went on to suggest the husband and wife are more involved in each other’s professional lives than they previously revealed. He wrote, “Whether she’s inflating her knowledge of judges’ views on ethics reform or telling the truth, her apparent comments on behalf of judicial officers create a clear appearance of impropriety for Justice Thomas.”
It’s important to note that Ginni is a lawyer and conservative activist, according to NPR. Now with the integrity of her and her husband’s professional dealings being called into question, we could be looking at an avalanche of previous Supreme Court cases involving First Liberty now up for debate.