Being in government sounds great. You’ve got incredible power over the lives of millions of people, you can decide which companies live or die with a whim and a pen stroke, and — apparently — you have billionaires tripping over themselves to throw luxury goods at your feet like offerings to a minor god. At least, that seems to be how industry leaders approach Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas — like a harvest deity, whose favor must be curried to ensure a bountiful crop of share prices.
ProPublica investigated just how far donors are willing to go for Thomas, their close personal friend based on mutual interests who just so happens to have some sort of government job. As it turns out, they’re willing to go pretty damn far:
Like clockwork, Thomas’ leisure activities have been underwritten by benefactors who share the ideology that drives his jurisprudence. Their gifts include:
At least 38 destination vacations, including a previously unreported voyage on a yacht around the Bahamas; 26 private jet flights, plus an additional eight by helicopter; a dozen VIP passes to professional and college sporting events, typically perched in the skybox; two stays at luxury resorts in Florida and Jamaica; and one standing invitation to an uber-exclusive golf club overlooking the Atlantic coast.
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Perhaps even more significant, the pattern exposes consistent violations of judicial norms, experts, including seven current and former federal judges appointed by both parties, told ProPublica. “In my career I don’t remember ever seeing this degree of largesse given to anybody,” said Jeremy Fogel, a former federal judge who served for years on the judicial committee that reviews judges’ financial disclosures. “I think it’s unprecedented.”
What kind friends Justice Thomas has! I guess these are the connections you make when you’re a government employee, what with the mixers and pickleball tournaments and whatnot. DC is just a great city for meeting people, y’know?