Welters on a regular basis until the terms of the agreement were satisfied in full.” The justice issued a statement following the initial ProPublica report about accepting trips from Crow, which said he was “advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable” on financial disclosures. Burke disputed the Senate Finance Committee’s investigation to the New York Times, arguing “the loan was never forgiven” and “The Thomases made all payments to Mr. The justice had a 41% favorability rating among respondents, higher than the 37% who view him negatively, fueled by a 67% favorability rating among Republicans. That’s the share of respondents (including 40% of Republicans) in an April Economist/YouGov poll who said they strongly or somewhat disapprove of Thomas accepting “luxury trips without disclosing them.” Only 43% said they believe Thomas violated the law by doing so, though that’s higher than the 28% who said he didn’t. Justices are impeached and removed from office in the same way as presidents, with a majority vote in the House and two thirds majority in the Senate-which means any effort is almost certain to fail, given Republicans’ control of the House and narrow minority in the Senate. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and other left-wing lawmakers have called for Thomas’ impeachment over his associations with Crow, but that’s unlikely to happen. The Supreme Court has also so far declined to impose a code of ethics itself despite reportedly considering the matter for years, and Justice Elena Kagan said in August justices “have been discussing this issue,” but noted “it won't be a surprise to know that the nine of us have a variety of views about this.” Surprising Fact The chance of any legislation making it through Congress remains a long shot, however, as Republicans have opposed the efforts, painting Democrats’ ethics efforts as a partisan left-wing attack on conservative justices. Democrats in Congress have also pushed for ethics legislation that would force the Supreme Court to adopt a binding code of ethics as a result of the controversies-as justices aren’t required to follow an ethics code as lower federal judges are-with the Senate Judiciary Committee voting in favor of such a bill in July. Democratic lawmakers have referred the issue to the Judicial Conference, which would be tasked with enforcing those rules, but the body did not take up the ethics complaints at its last meeting. Thomas’ failure to report his dealings with Crow and other wealthy friends could violate the Ethics in Government Act, Democrats and ethics experts have suggested, which carries a punishment of a year in prison or a fine if violated, though it still remains to be seen if Thomas could face any consequences. Democrats in Congress have pushed for Chief Justice John Roberts and the Justice Department to investigate the relationship between Thomas and Crow and the justice’s failure to disclose it, and sought to have Roberts testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee, which he declined to do. The Senate Finance Committee has called for Thomas to share with them how much of the RV loan was repaid and whether it was properly reported, and said it had passed its concerns on to the Senate Judiciary Committee to consider potential ethics issues. Jackson is standing at the far right.Financial Disclosures: Thomas has made a series of other “errors and omissions” on financial disclosure reports, which the Washington Post reported includes reporting real estate income for decades from a company that shut down in 2006 and has in the past had to amend his financial disclosures multiple times, including after failing to report his wife’s income in the 2000s. The justices sit in order of seniority with the longest-serving justice, Justice Clarence Thomas, sitting on Roberts’ right. The four remaining justices stand behind them. Five of the justices are seated in their black robes with Chief Justice John Roberts in the center. Jackson participated in her first arguments this week because the justices began their summer break when she joined the court.įriday's formal photo captured by news photographers is sometimes called the group's “class photo.” In it, the justices are positioned in front of a red curtain, similar to their courtroom's red drapes. It's also the first time the court has had two Black justices. It's the first time white men don't hold a majority on the court and the first time four women have served together. With her addition, the court marks a number of firsts. The new image includes Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, the first Black female justice, who joined the court in June. But it has never looked quite like the one taken on Friday. The group photo of the Supreme Court's nine members is a long-standing ritual.
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