Letters to the Editor: Take it from Justice Clarence Thomas: His billionaire friend wasn't buying anything

Los Angeles Times Opinion
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FILE - Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas speaks Sept. 16, 2021, at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind. Thomas says the Supreme Court has been changed by the leak of a draft opinion earlier this month. The opinion suggests the court is poised to overturn the right to an abortion recognized nearly 50 years ago in Roe v. Wade. The conservative Thomas, who joined the court in 1991 and has long called for Roe v. Wade to be overturned, described the leak as an unthinkable breach of trust. (Robert Franklin/South Bend Tribune via AP, File)
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, shown speaking at the University of Notre Dame in 2021, was treated to lavish trips by prominent Republican donor Harlan Crow. (Robert Franklin / Associated Press)
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To the editor: It brings a smile to my lips. Dream vacations, fabulous accommodations and the pleasure of warm friendship from a billionaire who provides all this while being, according to the same billionaire, unsullied by the sordid topics of the day. ("Justice Clarence Thomas says he will disclose his free trips in the future," April 7)

What's all the hubbub over these undisclosed gifts to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas about? It seems never to cross his mind that this largesse might be perceived as subtle smooth persuasion, even reinforcement of political principles.

"We are gentlemen with boundaries," might be the agreement. These trips of a lifetime had no life outside them. Special memories only.

It goes against common sense that a person who is an associate justice of the Supreme Court with massive power over the lives of millions of Americans never wondered about this. Maybe some bureaucrats simply forgot to place a "keep off the grass" sign on such opulence.

Today, Thomas states that he will, from this day forward, never make this mistake again. Next.

Andy Siegel, Santa Barbara

..

To the editor: Thomas said he was given bad advice on disclosing gifts and trips from his billionaire friend. For nearly 20 years.

Is that an acceptable defense against ethical lapses for everyone else on the Supreme Court?

Marty Foster, San Francisco

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.