# Clarence Thomas secretly accepted luxury vacations from GOP donor without disclosing **URL:** \ **Category:** Politics & Elections\ **Created:** [April 6, 2023, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252 "2023-04-06T14:10:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 25
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/483 "2023-09-22T20:49:26Z")
> [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](#): > > How about a pressure campaign for his retirement ? How? With a free vacation? The Supreme Court was set up to make it nearly impossible to pressure a justice into doing anything. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/484 "2023-09-22T20:51:34Z")
Well, I guess the pressure would have to come from Roberts so there goes that idea. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/485 "2023-09-22T20:55:05Z")
At best, Roberts can deprive Thomas of the privilege (or burden) of writing majority opinions. That’s about it. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/486 "2023-09-22T20:57:05Z")
For a justice who went ten years without asking a question I doubt he cares at all. He gets his vote and collects his paycheck. It seems he has little regard for the institution. ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/487 "2023-09-22T21:00:35Z")
> [@Whack-a-Mole](#): > > He gets his vote and collects his paycheck. Plus a few perks here and there. ---
**Author:** ![Moriarty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/moriarty/32/49_2.png) [@Moriarty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moriarty)\ **Post date:** [September 22, 2023, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/488 "2023-09-22T23:20:51Z")
The only recourse against Thomas is the same one that befell Scalia: age and gluttony. Thomas is 75 and overweight (perhaps obese). It is entirely likely that the he will die within the next 10 years. ETA: Alito is 73. The balance of power in the court could shift within the decade. Scalia died at 79. ---
**Author:** ![Akaj](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/akaj/32/145_2.png) [@Akaj](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Akaj)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 8:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/489 "2023-09-24T20:58:52Z")
> [@Moriarty](#): > > Thomas is 75 and overweight (perhaps obese). It is entirely likely that the he will die within the next 10 years. Problem is, we need him to die in the next 13 months. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/490 "2023-09-24T21:04:30Z")
If the Democrats ever regain the House, they should impeach him. With long, detailed hearings covering every single benefit he received from his close personal friends, and calling all of those generous friends to testify. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/491 "2023-09-24T22:16:54Z")
Thomas isn’t that heavy, and i believe he gets excellent medical care. I expect him to be with us for a while. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/492 "2023-09-24T22:49:26Z")
My understanding (from another justice’s clerk) some time back he was an avid power lifter and a bull on the b-ball court. So he might not be terribly unfit. ---
**Author:** ![SunUp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea5d25/32.png) [@SunUp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SunUp)\ **Post date:** [September 24, 2023, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/493 "2023-09-24T22:54:27Z")
And Anthony Kennedy showed that conservative Justices know the score better than (for example) Ruth Bader Ginsburg did - they need to leave at the right time when their replacements can get approved by the right people. Thomas knows his only chance to retire from the Court is to have a Republican presidency - otherwise, in obeisance to the conservative legal movement, he only gets to leave feet first. Slate has an analysis article about the latest Thomas revelations. It talks about how Thomas has shifted his position on _Chevron_ deference - IANAL, but it seems to be a doctrine that judges should defer broadly to the bureaucracy on regulations it issues according to laws passed by Congress. This would seem to undercut one of Thomas’s defenders’ go-to arguments - that his opinions are fixed and no amount of interaction with others or pecuniary gain would change that. The article is: > **[Clarence Thomas’ Latest Pay-to-Play Scandal Finally Connects All the Dots](https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2023/09/clarence-thomas-chevron-ethics-kochs.html)** > > There has never been a straighter line between Thomas' unethical conduct and his jurisprudence. (There is a paywall). Any Dopers with legal background care to talk about Thomas’s views on _Chevron_ deference and their evolution over time? ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/494 "2023-10-27T19:57:26Z")
I guess Clarence’s dishonesty is so well established that additional examples barely merit any attention, but the fucker didn’t even pay for his quarter million $ land yacht. > **[Clarence Thomas failed to fully repay $267,000 loan for luxury RV, inquiry finds](https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/oct/25/clarence-thomas-anthony-welters-luxury-rv-loan-forgiven)** > > Loan to conservative justice from businessman Anthony Welters – which tax expert says ‘made no logical sense’ – was forgiven in 2008 ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2023, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/495 "2023-10-27T20:01:07Z")
I read another version of the article earlier. A point made (for anyone not reading the articles) is that loan forgiveness is TAXABLE income, which was not reported. I would say that in light of this error, and other reported income errors, it’s time for the IRS to go over the last 20 years of his records with a fine toothed comb. Not for retribution (although he’ll claim it) but due to a pattern of such… mistakes. ---
**Author:** ![RitterSport](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rittersport/32/6326_2.png) [@RitterSport](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RitterSport)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2023, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/496 "2023-10-29T20:10:06Z")
Reminder, this corrupt tax cheat also voted against student loan forgiveness. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/497 "2023-11-13T22:14:06Z")
> **[The Supreme Court says it is adopting a code of ethics, but it has no means...](https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-ethics-code-conflicts-clarence-thomas-64d393ceb6f05402d762dca06f0f4187)** > > The new Supreme Court code of conduct agreed to by all nine justices does not appear to impose any significant new requirements on them. ---
**Author:** ![not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/not_what_you_d_expect/32/3246_2.png) [@not\_what\_you\_d\_expect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/not_what_you_d_expect)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/498 "2023-11-13T22:18:11Z")
And it’s really kind of the fault of everyone else that it’s needed. If we hadn’t misunderstood these innocent deeds, it never would have been necessary to have a code of ethics. Spineless assholes. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/499 "2023-11-13T22:31:27Z")
ISTM they already had a code of ethics which they have willfully ignored. This will be no better. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/500 "2023-11-13T22:32:57Z")
To the tune of “Teach Your Children” (by Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young) You, who are on the court Doing graft for sport just so you get by And so debase yourself Because the cash means lots you can buy Screw your country well Put the poor through hell, laugh while they cry Leave them with no dreams Let them be sick, no hope to live by There’s still so much to buy If they paid you, be their guy So just look them in the eye And know they own you ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_MB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/steve_mb/32/5339_2.png) [@Steve\_MB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_MB)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/501 "2023-11-13T22:39:02Z")
_(waves light)_ 🕯 ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2023, 11:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252/502 "2023-11-13T23:26:29Z")
> [@ParallelLines](#): > > I would say that in light of this error, and other reported income errors, it’s time for the IRS to go over the last 20 years of his records with a fine toothed comb. Not for retribution (although he’ll claim it) but due to a pattern of such… mistakes. Cite that Thomas made any errors or mistakes in his tax returns? The evidence suggests that he reported exactly what he intended to. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252.md?page=24) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/clarence-thomas-secretly-accepted-luxury-vacations-from-gop-donor-without-disclosing/982252.md?page=26)