Two top Senate Democrats have formally requested that the Justice Department launch a criminal investigation into Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas following revelations of undisclosed lavish gifts, luxury travel, and a significant loan from wealthy donors.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), chair of the Judiciary subcommittee on federal courts, and Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), chair of the Senate Finance Committee, sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland last week, urging the appointment of a special counsel to investigate whether Justice Thomas violated federal ethics and tax laws.
The letter also urged the special counsel to find whether Justice Thomas failed to report as income more than $267,000 he received in a forgiven loan in 2008, NBC News reported.
"We do not make this request lightly," the senators said in their letter.
"The evidence assembled thus far plainly suggests that Justice Thomas has committed numerous willful violations of federal ethics and false-statement laws and raises significant questions about whether he and his wealthy benefactors have complied with their federal tax obligations," they stated.
The Senate Finance Committee last year investigated a loan from Justice Thomas' friend, Anthony Welters, in 1999, which financed a luxury motor coach for the judge and his wife.
According to documents reviewed by the Senate Finance Committee, Justice Thomas made interest payments on the loan but ceased repaying the principal. The senators concluded that the loan was never fully repaid.
"Justice Thomas failed to clarify whether or why he failed to report hundreds of thousands of dollars in forgiven debt on his federal income tax returns and pay the income taxes owed. We submit that the facts we have developed, combined with strategically evasive answers, creates predication for further investigation by relevant authorities," the letter said.
Elliot S. Berke, an attorney for Justice Thomas, had previously claimed in a letter to the Finance Committee that the judge had made regular payments to Welters until the loan terms were fully satisfied.
The senators' letter also highlighted other potential ethical breaches, including undisclosed travel on a private yacht and jet, as well as other gifts from billionaire Harlan Crow and other affluent benefactors.
In a statement last month, Berke defended Justice Thomas, saying that the Judicial Conference had recently amended the personal hospitality exemption provision and that the judge "has fully complied with the new disclosure requirement."
Justice Thomas acknowledged two trips with Crow in 2019 in his annual financial disclosure report last month. Records released by the Senate Judiciary Committee also revealed that Crow had provided the judge with more undisclosed trips.
