A far-right religious rights group is fighting Supreme Court reform, and Ginni Thomas, the wife of Justice Clarence Thomas, is secretly one of its leading supporters.
The First Liberty Institute has a budget of $25 million a year and bills itself as “the nation’s largest legal organization dedicated exclusively “to defend religious freedom for all Americans.”
On July 31, the institute’s director, attorney Kelly Shackleford, held a private call with his organization’s major donors and read a thank-you email from Thomas, according to ProPublicawho got a recording.
“YOU HAVE FILLED THE SAILS OF MANY JUDGES. CAN I JUST SAY, THANK YOU SO MUCH, SO MUCH, SO MUCH,” Shackleford said in his email, in all caps. Shackleford added that Thomas also recently met with a staff member at First Liberty Institute.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you today,” Thomas wrote, according to Shackelford. “I can’t express my gratitude enough for your response to Biden’s Supreme Court effort.”
“Many were very depressed by the lack of response from Republicans and conservatives” to recent judicial reform proposals, Thomas’ email continues.
Shackleford told donors that he viewed the email as evidence that judges who “can’t get out into the political sphere and fight” appreciated the organization’s efforts.
“It’s nice that, you know, those of you who are on the call are helping to protect the future of our court, and you really appreciate it,” Shackleford said.
Shackleford later attacked liberal Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan, who supports ethics reforms on the court, as a “traitor” and “disloyal,” and said an ethics code would “destroy the independence of the judiciary.”
The conference call came days after President Biden announced his support for Supreme Court Reforms Among the proposals put forward were term limits for the court’s justices and a binding code of conduct. Shackleford attacked these and other proposals on the appeal, calling them “a dangerous attempt to really destroy the court, the Supreme Court” by “people on the far progressive left” who were “upset by just a few cases.”
Shackleford and Thomas appear to be ignoring the fact that her husband’s ethical failings have sparked calls for judicial reform, particularly the numerous gifts the judge received from conservative megadonor Harlan Crow, which he failed to deliver. discloseincluding luxury vacation and the renovation from the house where Thomas’ mother lives.
Ginni Thomas, for her part, is a longtime conservative activist who has played a suspicious role She participated in the January 6 Capitol riot and efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election in favor of Donald Trump. This latest revelation seems to indicate that she and her husband feel no remorse for their ethically questionable behavior.
