ProPublica reports that Thomas was in debt, frustrated with his salary, and implying he’d resign from the Supreme Court if his financial situation didn’t change—just before Harlan Crow and other conservatives started lavishing him with expensive gifts and luxury vacations.

Before he began receiving expensive gifts and luxury vacations from Harlan Crow and other conservative benefactors, Clarence Thomas reportedly expressed significant concerns about his financial situation—even prompting concerns from a Republican lawmaker more than 20 years ago that he might resign from the Supreme Court if he could not boost his salary.

“One or more justices will leave soon” if justices aren’t given a raise, Thomas told then Republican Representative Cliff Stearns in 2000, as they flew home from a conservative conference at a Georgia resort, according to ProPublica.

  • papertowels@lemmy.one
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    1 year ago

    To add on, security clearances are centered around the idea of “how much damage could this cause to the country if mishandled”.

    Well, SCOTUS can do a lot of damage to the country.

    • rayyy@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      “how much damage could this cause to the country if mishandled”.

      Like fixing an election - Gore vs Bush