MSNBC’s Ari Melber has taken Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to task over recent revelations that he and his wife, Ginni, accepted numerous gifts from wealthy donors. Melber’s scathing monologue confronts Thomas with some hard-hitting questions: “Do you think you’re above the law? Do you think you will get away with this forever?”
These revelations come amid an ethics scandal involving undeclared gifts from billionaire Harlan Crow. ProPublica reported that Crow paid the $6,000-a-month tuition for Thomas’ grandnephew to attend a private boarding school in Georgia. Additionally, The Washington Post disclosed that conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo paid Ginni Thomas tens of thousands of dollars in consulting fees while insisting her name be left off the paperwork.
Previously, ProPublica had found that the Thomases enjoyed luxury vacations “virtually every year,” including private jets, superyachts, and exclusive resorts, all courtesy of Crow. However, Melber played footage from a documentary in which Justice Thomas claims he prefers “RV parks” and “Walmart parking lots” for his travels, emphasizing his affinity for regular people.
Melber didn’t buy it, retorting, “No, you don’t. Why were you lying about it? Were you feeling guilty? Were you also lying to your colleagues on the Supreme Court?”
For the young and politically engaged readers of The Young Turks, these ethical scandals involving a Supreme Court Justice raise important questions about transparency, accountability, and the influence of wealth on those in positions of power.
