www.nytimes.com
Open in
urlscan Pro
151.101.1.164
Public Scan
URL:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html
Submission: On May 17 via manual from US — Scanned from US
Submission: On May 17 via manual from US — Scanned from US
Form analysis 2 forms found in the DOM
POST https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083
<form method="post" action="https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083"
data-testid="MagicLinkForm" style="visibility: hidden;"><input name="client_id" type="hidden" value="web.fwk.vi"><input name="redirect_uri" type="hidden"
value="https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083"><input
name="response_type" type="hidden" value="code"><input name="state" type="hidden" value="no-state"><input name="scope" type="hidden" value="default"></form>POST https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083
<form method="post" action="https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083"
data-testid="MagicLinkForm" style="visibility: hidden;"><input name="client_id" type="hidden" value="web.fwk.vi"><input name="redirect_uri" type="hidden"
value="https://nytimes.app.goo.gl/?link=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html&apn=com.nytimes.android&amv=9837&ibi=com.nytimes.NYTimes&isi=284862083"><input
name="response_type" type="hidden" value="code"><input name="state" type="hidden" value="no-state"><input name="scope" type="hidden" value="default"></form>Text Content
Skip to contentSkip to site indexSearch & Section NavigationSection Navigation
SEARCH
SUBSCRIBE FOR $1/WEEKLog in
Friday, May 17, 2024
Today’s Paper
SUBSCRIBE FOR $1/WEEK
Editorials|The Ethics of Nine of the Most Powerful People in America
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/opinion/editorials/clarence-thomas-trips-supreme-court.html
* Share full article
*
*
* 1.5k
* U.S.
SECTIONS
* U.S.
* Politics
* New York
* California
* Education
* Health
* Obituaries
* Science
* Climate
* Sports
* Business
* Tech
* The Upshot
* The Magazine
U.S. POLITICS
* 2024 Elections
* Primary Results
* Supreme Court
* Congress
* Biden Administration
TOP STORIES
* Trump Investigations
* Immigration
* Abortion
* Campus Protests
NEWSLETTERS
* The Morning
Make sense of the day’s news and ideas.
* The Upshot
Analysis that explains politics, policy and everyday life.
See all newsletters
PODCASTS
* The Daily
The biggest stories of our time, in 20 minutes a day.
* The Run-Up
On the campaign trail with Astead Herndon.
See all podcasts
* World
SECTIONS
* World
* Africa
* Americas
* Asia
* Australia
* Canada
* Europe
* Middle East
* Science
* Climate
* Health
* Obituaries
TOP STORIES
* Israel-Hamas War
* Russia-Ukraine War
NEWSLETTERS
* Morning Briefing: Europe
Get what you need to know to start your day.
* The Interpreter
Original analysis on the week’s biggest global stories.
* Your Places: Global Update
The latest news for any part of the world you select.
* Canada Letter
Backstories and analysis from our Canadian correspondents.
See all newsletters
* Business
SECTIONS
* Business
* Tech
* Economy
* Media
* Finance and Markets
* DealBook
* Personal Tech
* Energy Transition
* Your Money
TOP STORIES
* U.S. Economy
* Stock Market
* Artificial Intelligence
NEWSLETTERS
* DealBook
The most crucial business and policy news you need to know.
See all newsletters
PODCASTS
* Hard Fork
Our tech journalists help you make sense of the rapidly changing tech
world.
See all podcasts
* Arts
SECTIONS
* Today's Arts
* Books
* Best Sellers
* Dance
* Movies
* Music
* Television
* Theater
* Pop Culture
* T Magazine
* Visual Arts
RECOMMENDATIONS
* Best of 2023
* Award Season
* Critic’s Picks
* What to Read
* What to Watch
* What to Listen To
* 5 Minutes to Make You Love Music
NEWSLETTERS
* Read Like the Wind
Book recommendations from our critics.
* Watching
Streaming TV and movie recommendations.
See all newsletters
PODCASTS
* Book Review
The podcast that takes you inside the literary world.
* Popcast
Pop music news, new songs and albums, and artists of note.
See all podcasts
* Lifestyle
SECTIONS
* All Lifestyle
* Well
* Travel
* Style
* Real Estate
* Food
* Love
* Your Money
* Personal Tech
* T Magazine
COLUMNS
* 36 Hours
* Ask Well
* The Hunt
* Modern Love
* Where to Eat
* Vows
* Social Q’s
* The Ethicist
NEWSLETTERS
* Open Thread
The latest news on what we wear, by our chief fashion critic.
* Well
Essential news and guidance to live your healthiest life.
See all newsletters
PODCASTS
* Modern Love
The complicated love lives of real people.
See all podcasts
* Opinion
SECTIONS
* Opinion
* Guest Essays
* Editorials
* Op-Docs
* Videos
* Letters
TOPICS
* Politics
* World
* Business
* Tech
* Climate
* Health
* Culture
COLUMNISTS
* Charles M. Blow
* Jamelle Bouie
* David Brooks
* Gail Collins
* Ross Douthat
* Maureen Dowd
* David French
* Thomas L. Friedman
* Michelle Goldberg
* Ezra Klein
* Nicholas Kristof
* Paul Krugman
* Carlos Lozada
* Tressie McMillan Cottom
* Pamela Paul
* Lydia Polgreen
* Bret Stephens
* Zeynep Tufekci
PODCASTS
* Matter of Opinion
Thoughts, aloud. With Michelle Cottle, Ross Douthat, Carlos Lozada and
Lydia Polgreen.
* The Ezra Klein Show
Discussions of ideas that matter, plus book recommendations.
See all podcasts
* Audio
AUDIO
Podcasts and narrated articles covering news, tech, culture and more.
Download the Audio app on iOS.
LISTEN
* The Headlines
* The Daily
* Hard Fork
* The Ezra Klein Show
* Matter of Opinion
* Serial Productions
* The Book Review Podcast
* Modern Love
* The Run-Up
* Popcast
* Reporter Reads
* The Sunday Read
* The Culture Desk
* The Interview
See all audio
FEATURED
* The Interview
Conversations with the world’s most fascinating people.
* The Headlines
Your morning listen. Top stories, in 5 minutes.
* Serial Season 4: Guantánamo
What it was really like, from people who lived it.
NEWSLETTERS
* Audio
Our editors share their favorite listens from the New York Times Audio
app.
See all newsletters
Audio is included in an All Access subscription. Learn more.
* Games
GAMES
Word games, logic puzzles and crosswords, including an extensive archive.
PLAY
* Spelling Bee
* The Mini Crossword
* Wordle
* The Crossword
* Vertex
* Connections
* Sudoku
* Letter Boxed
* Tiles
COMMUNITY
* Spelling Bee Forum
* Wordplay Column
* Wordle Review
* Submit a Crossword
* Meet Our Crossword Constructors
* Mini to Maestro
* Wordlebot
* Take the Puzzle Personality Quiz
NEWSLETTERS
* Gameplay
Puzzles, brain teasers, solving tips and more.
* Easy Mode
Get an easy version of one of the hardest crossword puzzles of the week.
See all newsletters
Games is included in an All Access subscription. Learn more.
* Cooking
COOKING
Recipes, advice and inspiration for everyday cooking, special occasions and
more.
RECIPES
* Easy
* Dinner
* Quick
* Healthy
* Breakfast
* Vegetarian
* Vegan
* Chicken
* Pasta
* Dessert
EDITORS' PICKS
* Soups and Stews
* Easy Weeknight
* Newest Recipes
* One-Pot Meals
* Slow Cooker Recipes
* Comfort Food
* Party Recipes
NEWSLETTERS
* The Cooking Newsletter
New recipes, easy dinner ideas and smart kitchen tips from Melissa Clark,
Sam Sifton and our New York Times Cooking editors.
* The Veggie
Delicious vegetarian recipes and tips from Tanya Sichynsky.
* Five Weeknight Dishes
Dinner ideas for busy people from Emily Weinstein.
See all newsletters
Cooking is included in an All Access subscription. Learn more.
* Wirecutter
WIRECUTTER
Reviews and recommendations for thousands of products.
REVIEWS
* Kitchen
* Tech
* Sleep
* Appliances
* Home and Garden
* Moving
* Travel
* Gifts
* Deals
* Baby and Kid
* Health and Fitness
THE BEST...
* Air Purifier
* Electric Toothbrush
* Pressure Washer
* Cordless Stick Vacuum
* Office Chair
* Robot Vacuum
NEWSLETTERS
* The Recommendation
The best independent reviews, expert advice and intensively researched
deals.
* Clean Everything
Step-by-step advice on how to keep everything in your home squeaky clean.
See all newsletters
Wirecutter is included in an All Access subscription. Learn more.
* The Athletic
THE ATHLETIC
Personalized coverage of your sports teams and leagues.
LEAGUES
* NFL
* MLB
* NBA
* Premier League
* NCAAF
* NCAAM
* NHL
* NCAAW
* MLS
* Formula 1
* NWSL
* Golf
TOP STORIES
* Today's News
* 2024 NFL Draft
* MLB Standings
* Olympics
NEWSLETTERS
* The Pulse
Delivering the top stories in sports, Sunday to Friday.
* Scoop City
The top stories in the NFL, from Jacob Robinson with Dianna Russini.
* The Windup
The biggest stories in baseball, by Levi Weaver with Ken Rosenthal.
* The Athletic FC
Renowned soccer writer Phil Hay's daily newsletter unpacks the truth
behind the game's biggest stories.
The Athletic is included in an All Access subscription. Learn more.
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
Opinion
Supported by
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
The Editorial Board
THE ETHICS OF NINE OF THE MOST POWERFUL PEOPLE IN AMERICA
April 14, 2023
Credit...Illustration by The New York Times; photographs by Evelyn
Hockstein/Reuters and S. Greg Panosian/Getty
* Share full article
*
*
* 1.5k
* Read in app
By The Editorial Board
The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed
by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate
from the newsroom.
At least one member of the Supreme Court told Justice Clarence Thomas that there
was no problem accepting privately paid luxury trips and other lavish gifts from
“close personal friends” without disclosing them, according to a statement
issued earlier this month by Justice Thomas. Whoever it was — names were not
disclosed — gave him stunningly tone-deaf advice, given the uproar that followed
when ProPublica reported that the justice had for more than 20 years accepted
expensive gifts and trips from a billionaire conservative friend.
But Justice Thomas’s indulgence is just the latest and most egregious example of
a weakness demonstrated by virtually every member of the court for decades,
those nominated by Republican and Democratic presidents alike: a willingness to
accept freebies, gifts and junkets — both costly and modest — from people and
groups who find it useful to be close to nine of the most powerful people in the
United States.
While some of these gifts have been disclosed (though not always in much
detail), their preponderance — despite years of calls for restraint and
self-policing by the court — show how vital it is that the Supreme Court adhere
to a clear ethics code that would limit gifts and mandate full disclosure of all
outside income to the justices.
The long list of comforts provided to Justice Thomas and his wife, Ginni, was
shocking mainly in its rococo extravagance. Nine days of island cruising in
Indonesia on a fully staffed superyacht. Regular flights on a private jet.
Summers at a private resort in the Adirondacks, and every dollar of it paid by
Harlan Crow, a real estate baron from Texas who has spent millions for decades
to elect Republicans and on efforts to push the judiciary to the right.
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
None of it was on the justice’s annual financial disclosure form. Neither was a
payment of $133,363 that Mr. Crow made to Mr. Thomas and his family in 2014 in
exchange for three properties in Savannah, Ga., including the house where the
justice’s mother has lived, ProPublica reported on Thursday. Mr. Crow said he
bought the real estate in order to create a Clarence Thomas museum one day.
Experts said the failure to disclose the sale or the free trips was a clear
violation of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, which was intended to apply
to all government employees and requires disclosure of real estate transactions
and most gifts. Each branch of government was given considerable leeway in
determining how it would comply with the law, and court critics have long said
that the Supreme Court’s compliance was the weakest of any federal government
body.
Failing to disclose gifts and transactions is only one part of the problem,
though. The gifts that many justices have disclosed in full or in part over the
years are often just as damaging to the court’s reputation as those they did not
fully disclose. Justice Antonin Scalia took at least 258 subsidized trips while
on the court, often to distant destinations, all paid for by private donors,
some of which were at least partially disclosed. (He often tacked hunting trips
onto trips to give speeches, but disclosed only the speeches.) He died in 2016
while staying in a luxurious Texas hunting lodge owned by John Poindexter, a
wealthy businessman whose company had legal matters before the court; that trip
was never officially disclosed. Justice Stephen Breyer took at least 225
subsidized trips from 2004 to 2018, according to data compiled by the Center for
Responsive Politics, including trips to Europe, Japan, India and Hawaii. One was
a trip to Nantucket paid for by David Rubenstein, a private equity mogul.
Subscribe to The Times to read as many articles as you like.
The editorial board is a group of opinion journalists whose views are informed
by expertise, research, debate and certain longstanding values. It is separate
from the newsroom.
Read 1509 Comments
* Share full article
*
*
* 1.5k
* Read in app
Advertisement
SKIP ADVERTISEMENT
COMMENTS 1509
The Ethics of Nine of the Most Powerful People in AmericaSkip to Comments
The comments section is closed. To submit a letter to the editor for
publication, write to letters@nytimes.com.
SITE INDEX
SITE INFORMATION NAVIGATION
* © 2024 The New York Times Company
* NYTCo
* Contact Us
* Accessibility
* Work with us
* Advertise
* T Brand Studio
* Your Ad Choices
* Privacy Policy
* Terms of Service
* Terms of Sale
* Site Map
* Canada
* International
* Help
* Subscriptions
Enjoy unlimited access to all of The Times.
See subscription options