Justice Clarence Thomas denounced Washington as a “hideous place” filled with “horrible people,” saying he and his wife were hounded by “wickedness” and lies.
The Supreme Court justice has faced intense public scrutiny due to his wife, Virginia Thomas’, efforts to overturn the 2020 election and his acceptance of luxury gifts from billionaire friends.
In his first in-depth public comments since the scandals, at a judicial conference in Alabama on Friday, Thomas said he and his wife had been victims of “meanness” and “lies.”
The New York Times reported that he said: “Especially in Washington, people pride themselves on being horrible. It’s a hideous place, as far as I’m concerned.
Thomas is one of the Supreme Court’s most conservative and controversial justices and was instrumental in overturning the federal right to abortion granted by Roe v. Wade.
Justice Clarence Thomas was exposed in a series of expenses scandals last year
His wife, Virginia Thomas, has supported false claims that the 2020 election was stolen.
Thomas was criticized after learning he had borrowed more than a quarter of a million dollars from a friend to buy his camper van.
Thomas made the remarks while being interviewed by former Clerk Kathryn Kimball Mizelle at the 11th Circuit Judicial Conference held at a luxury resort in Mobile Bay.
He did not specify who or what he was referring to, but he made sweeping statements about the “negativity” he has faced in recent years.
He said: “There has certainly been a lot of negativity in my wife and I’s lives over the last few years, but we have chosen not to focus on that.”
Thomas faced calls for recusal after it was revealed that his wife tried to overturn the 2020 election and endorsed false claims that the election was stolen.
Then, last year, a series of investigations revealed that he failed to report dozens of lavish trips and expenses paid for by Republican billionaire Harlan Crow.
The ensuing scandal called into question his integrity and impartiality, particularly following the highly politicized Roe v. Wade ruling and his refusal to recuse himself from hearings related to the January 6 insurrection.
Thomas did not directly reference the scandals in his comments and instead focused on his career and life before politics.
He said: “I was thinking of leaving Washington. I had no interest in participating in public life.
“I found myself in this job and it is, we pray, to do everything that God wanted me to do, what I was called to do. But being in public life is not something I would have chosen to do.
He added: “Especially in Washington, people pride themselves on being horrible. It’s a hideous place, as far as I’m concerned.
“Because in the rest of the country, that’s one of the reasons we love traveling in a campervan, you’re around ordinary people who don’t pride themselves on doing harmful things, just because they have the ability to do so.”
He did not mention claims that he borrowed more than a quarter of a million dollars from a friend to buy his camper.
In April of last year, ProPublica revealed that Thomas failed to report 20 years of jet-setting and luxury travel paid for by Crow on financial disclosure forms.
They revealed Thomas vacationed on Crow’s super yacht, flew on his Bombardier Global 5000 jet and vacationed with him at a men-only resort in California, Bohemian Grove.
Crow also allegedly paid about $100,000 in college tuition for Thomas’ great-nephew and purchased the house Thomas’ mother lived in.
Conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas revealed that Republican billionaire Harlan Crow paid for three of his private flights.
Democratic Senator Sheldon Whitehouse shows a painting of Clarence Thomas (second from right) and Harlan Crow (right) gathered at Crow’s Adirondack Resort, Camp Topridge. The painting is on display at the New York property
An image of Crow’s yacht, the Michaela Rose, which was adorned with a giant inflatable rubber duck during the Thomases 2019 trip to Indonesia
They also revealed that Thomas spent time at the Crow ranch in East Texas and tended to spend a week each summer at Crow’s private resort in New York’s Adirondacks, Camp Topridge.
Rates at a nearby hotel start at $2,250 a night, but Camp Topridge is even more exclusive because guests must be personally invited by Crow.
It also features original features, including a replica of Hagrid from Harry Potter’s cabin, a 1950s-style soda fountain, and bronze gnome statues.
A 2019 trip that Thomas and his wife Ginni took to Indonesia with Crow — which included private flights and time aboard the yacht, named Michaela Rose and adorned with a giant inflatable rubber duck — reportedly cost around $500,000 , said the news agency. .
Thomas’ annual salary is $285,000.
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