Op-Ed: Clarence Thomas earns our scorn
2 years, 6 months ago

Op-Ed: Clarence Thomas earns our scorn

LA Times  

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, whose views once kept him on the sidelines, now commands attention. Bush’s cynical racial calculation that put Thomas on the court — trying to appeal to harder-edged conservatives while appearing progressive — but it is Thomas who has long borne the brunt of our scorn. His concurring opinion in the court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade doesn’t just concur, it urges the right wing toward more fascism, more undoing of rights not explicitly articulated in the 14th Amendment, rights Thomas believes are not protected by “substantive due process.” Unlike his fellow conservative jurists, Thomas is taking a certain relish in kicking over cans, a triumphalism that feels downright Trumpian. But the most galling thing is that Thomas’ prominence is made possible by another Black man: President Obama. The right’s slavish defense of gun rights, even in the midst of mass shootings, led to the Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning New York’s 100-year-old concealed-carry law.

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U.S. Supreme Court: Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito are big mad that a court called out their gun extremism.
1 month ago

U.S. Supreme Court: Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito are big mad that a court called out their gun extremism.

Slate  

Sign up for the Slatest to get the most insightful analysis, criticism, and advice out there, delivered to your inbox daily. Last February, the Hawaii Supreme Court dared to call out the U.S. Supreme Court’s Second Amendment jurisprudence for what it is: unworkable law built on bogus history and pro-gun fanaticism. Nonetheless, Thomas, in his opinion joined by Alito, seized …

How Trump and Senate Republicans are circling the wagons to save Clarence Thomas
6 months, 1 week ago

How Trump and Senate Republicans are circling the wagons to save Clarence Thomas

Raw Story  

WASHINGTON — The cycle continues: Clarence Thomas has former President Donald Trump’s back, Trump has Senate Republicans in his back pocket and Senate Republicans, in turn, have Thomas’ back. “The Supreme Court has developed its own code of ethics, and I have not reviewed that,” Sen. Susan Collins told Raw Story. “I’m all for getting the Article III branch to …

'Fighting words': Amy Coney Barrett signals court rift with swipe at Clarence Thomas
6 months, 3 weeks ago

'Fighting words': Amy Coney Barrett signals court rift with swipe at Clarence Thomas

Raw Story  

The last of former President Donald Trump's three Supreme Court appointees appears to be on a collision course with far-right Justice Clarence Thomas — and it could have implications for some upcoming hot-button cases. According to Politico, the conservative Barrett, whose history of involvement with religious extremists was a huge point of controversy when she was nominated for the court …

5 takeaways from AP’s Black attorneys general interviews about race, justice and politics
1 year, 1 month ago

5 takeaways from AP’s Black attorneys general interviews about race, justice and politics

Associated Press  

BOSTON — At a moment of record visibility and influence for Black attorneys in the United States, debates over race, criminal justice and democracy are increasingly at the center of the public conversation. Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell said the public expects that Black attorneys general “will take out bias that exists in criminal or civil prosecutions, that we will …

Clarence Thomas Just Made Another Mess for His Colleagues to Clean Up
55 years ago

Clarence Thomas Just Made Another Mess for His Colleagues to Clean Up

Slate  

Back in July, the Supreme Court shocked observers by turning down a chance to do what it loves doing most: dismantle the Voting Rights Act, piece by piece. And Thomas, as he is wont to do in cases he loses, extended a conspicuous invitation to right-wing activists and/or lower court judges in a footnote: The opinion in Milligan, he noted, …

SCOTUS rulings and Trump indictment: Maybe a sliver of the GOP is starting to get spooked.
1 year, 6 months ago

SCOTUS rulings and Trump indictment: Maybe a sliver of the GOP is starting to get spooked.

Slate  

This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slate’s coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. There’s a through line that’s more like an oil pipeline connecting the Troubles that currently beset former President Donald Trump and the Troubles currently plaguing the conservative supermajority at the U.S. Supreme Court. As Ryan Goodman put it this week, the sole explanation …

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas Has To Go
1 year, 8 months ago

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas Has To Go

Huff Post  

Another day, another ethics complaint against Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. In 1991, when President George H. W. Bush nominated Thomas to succeed retiring Associate Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, we learned during the confirmation hearings about the alleged sexual harassment that Anita Hill endured while they both worked at the Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. …

Unequal Justice: Clarence Thomas isn't going anywhere
1 year, 8 months ago

Unequal Justice: Clarence Thomas isn't going anywhere

Raw Story  

The problem with Justice Clarence Thomas isn’t just that he’s reactionary or morally bankrupt. Thomas and his wife regularly take summer vacations at Crow’s rustic resort in the Adirondack Mountains of New York, and have been hosted at Crow’s ranch in East Texas. On April 13,ProPublica updated its reporting to add that in 2014, Crow purchased the two-bedroom home in …

Clarence Thomas claims he had 'no idea' why he was nominated to be on the Supreme Court: new book
2 years, 6 months ago

Clarence Thomas claims he had 'no idea' why he was nominated to be on the Supreme Court: new book

Raw Story  

According to the new book, "Created Equal: Clarence Thomas in His Own Words," the Supreme Court justice admits that he was surprised as anyone when he was picked by former President George H.W. Bush to fill an open seat on the court in 1991. Business Insider is reporting that in the book, edited by Michael Pack and Mark Paoletta, Thomas …

Clarence Thomas exposed himself with his complaints about attacks on the Supreme Court: columnist
2 years, 7 months ago

Clarence Thomas exposed himself with his complaints about attacks on the Supreme Court: columnist

Raw Story  

In a column for MSNBC's Maddowblog, political analyst Steve Benen made the case that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas' complaint last week about the leak of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito's draft Roe v Wade ruling said more about him than the sanctity of the court. I wonder how long we’re going to have these institutions at the rate we’re …

Suspicious Clarence Thomas Complains He's 'Looking Over' His Shoulder Since Leak
2 years, 7 months ago

Suspicious Clarence Thomas Complains He's 'Looking Over' His Shoulder Since Leak

Huff Post  

LOADING ERROR LOADING Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Friday complained about having to “look over” his shoulder since the leak of the controversial draft opinion that would gut Roe v. Wade. “You would never visit Supreme Court justices’ houses when things didn’t go our way,” Thomas insisted. It is incumbent on us to always act appropriately, and not to …

Don’t expect Republicans to go easy on Ketanji Brown Jackson
2 years, 9 months ago

Don’t expect Republicans to go easy on Ketanji Brown Jackson

The Independent  

When Ruth Bader Ginsburg died, there was an outpouring of grief across liberal America. That still gave Trump time to quickly fill Ginsburg’s empty seat on the Supreme Court with a hardline, anti-abortionist conservative: Amy Coney Barrett, a woman who stood against pretty much everything Ginsburg had believed in. It’s easy to imagine why people might be angry at conservatives …

The Nasty Double Standards That Make This SCOTUS Nomination So Toxic
2 years, 11 months ago

The Nasty Double Standards That Make This SCOTUS Nomination So Toxic

Slate  

There are so many interesting firsts to be found on the shortlist of prospective Black women being vetted for the vacancy at the Supreme Court. As we noted last week, in part thanks to President Joe Biden’s promise to nominate a Black woman, the drumbeat of “not smart” had fired up within hours of shortlists being circulated. This summation quickly …

Clarence Thomas: From 'Black Panther Type' To Supreme Court's Conservative Beacon
5 years, 5 months ago

Clarence Thomas: From 'Black Panther Type' To Supreme Court's Conservative Beacon

NPR  

Clarence Thomas: From 'Black Panther Type' To Supreme Court's Conservative Beacon Enlarge this image toggle caption Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images Law Justice Clarence Thomas Will Enter His 29th Term In The Fall Justice Clarence Thomas Will Enter His 29th Term In The Fall Listen · 6:52 6:52 On the U.S. Supreme Court, where nine justices often disagree but …

Justice Thomas talks at court arguments, 1st time in 3 years
5 years, 9 months ago

Justice Thomas talks at court arguments, 1st time in 3 years

Associated Press  

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court was about to adjourn for the day when the Georgia baritone politely inquired of the lawyer at the lectern. Justice Clarence Thomas, the court’s only African-American member and lone Southerner, was breaking a three-year silence at high court arguments with a couple of questions in a case about racial discrimination in the South. “Would you …

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