Clarence Thomas Took More Trips On GOP Donor's Jet He Didn't Disclose, Senator Says
HuffPost
The conservative Supreme Court justice went on an international round-trip in 2010 with his billionaire benefactor Harlan Crow, according to Sen. Ron Wyden.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden revealed on Monday that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas had failed to disclose even more flights aboard a private jet owned by Republican mega-donor Harlan Crow than were previously known.
In a letter to an attorney representing Crow, the Oregon Democrat also demanded travel and financial records related to Crow’s superyacht, the Michaela Rose, and the relationship between the justice and his billionaire benefactor. Crow’s legal team has repeatedly avoided providing such records, but Wyden said they could help determine whether the real estate mogul claimed business deductions on personal trips aboard luxury craft ― including those with Thomas ― to evade taxes.
“On several occasions, I have asked directly how many times Justice Thomas traveled aboard the Michaela Rose and private jets paid for by Mr. Crow, and whether Mr. Crow deducted the costs of these particular trips on tax filings. These should not be difficult questions to answer,” Wyden wrote to the attorney. “The possibility that Mr. Crow may have lavished secret gifts on a sitting Supreme Court justice and then impermissibly reduced his taxable income by millions of dollars with impunity requires legislative scrutiny.”
A spokesperson for the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s request for comment. A spokesperson for Crow told The New York Times that Wyden’s inquiries have “no legal basis” and that the real estate mogul has “always followed applicable tax law.”
Wyden’s committee has opened an inquiry into Crow and Thomas’ financial relationship as top Democrats work to bring major ethics reform to the Supreme Court. Reports that multiple justices failed to disclose luxury gifts and travel from ultrarich benefactors have led Democrats, including President Joe Biden, to call for term limits and a code of conduct that is enforceable.
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