Sen Ron Wyden and Rep Ilhan Omar called for more action against Justice Clarence Thomas after a report revealed that his wife Virginia “Ginni” Thomas and then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows messaged repeatedly about efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
Mr Wyden said that Mr Thomas should recuse himself in any cases regarding January 6, according to HuffPost’s Jennifer Bendery, after The Washington Post and CBS News reported that Ms Thomas repeatedly texted Mr Meadows about attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.
“In light of new reporting from numerous outlets, Justice Thomas’ conduct on the Supreme Court looks increasingly corrupt," Mr Wyden said in a statement.
But the Minnesota Democrat and member of the progressive “Squad” called for more explicit consequences.
“Clarence Thomas needs to be impeached,” Ms Omar tweeted.
Supreme Court Justice terms are for life and the only way to remove a Justice from office is through impeachment. But a Supreme Court Justice has never been removed from office via impeachment. In 1805, the House of Representatives impeached Samuel Chase but the Senate failed to convict him. Since then, the House has not impeached a justice.
Similarly, the news comes as Democrats hope to confirm Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court. After a contentious hearing where plenty of Republicans brought up Democrats’ treatment of Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his confirmation, Republicans would likely do whatever they could to stall her confirmation.
