Kevyn wrote:
This is long overdue, his corruption is an embarrassment to the nation.
U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas has been offered $1 million a year and a $2.4 million motor coach if he agrees to resign from the nation's highest court.
Comedian John Oliver, host of HBO's Last Week Tonight, made the offer at the end of his show on Sunday and showed off the motor coach he was offering to the Supreme Court's longest-serving member.
Thomas, the most senior member of the Court's conservative majority, has previously faced calls to resign or be impeached amid questions about his relationship with billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow and gifts from other rich acquaintances.
"Clarence Thomas is arguably the most consequential justice on the court right now and he's never really seemed to like the job. He said, 'It's not worth doing for the grief.' So what if he can keep the luxury perks he clearly enjoys without having to endure all of that grief," Oliver said, before revealing what he called "a special offer."
The offer includes "one million dollars a year for the rest of your life if you simply agree to leave the Supreme Court immediately and never come back."
Oliver also produced a contract that the justice would need to sign in order to agree to the deal and Oliver said he was offering the money to Thomas himself.
"HBO is not putting up the money for this. I am personally on the hook. You can make me really regret this. I could be doing standup tours to pay for your retirement for years," he said.
The comedian added Thomas has "exactly 30 days from midnight tonight to make your resignation effective" before the offer expires.
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Oliver also included a motor home in the offer. Worth $2.4 million it comes with a bedroom featuring a king-size bed, a fireplace, what Oliver described as a "residential-size fridge" and other amenities.
The inclusion of a motor home is a reference to questions raised about a 1999 loan provided to Thomas by Anthony Welters, who made his fortune in the healthcare industry, in order for the justice to purchase a Prevost Marathon Le Mirage XL recreational vehicle (RV).
A report from Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee in October said that Thomas had failed to repay of "significant portion" of the $267,230 loan.
Concluding his offer on Sunday, Oliver said: "So that's the offer. A million dollars a year and a brand new condo on wheels and all you have to do in return is sign the contract and get the f*** off the Supreme Court."
The comedian urged Thomas to "talk it over with your totally best friend in the whole world"—a reference to the justice's wife, lawyer, and conservative activist Virginia "Ginni" Thomas, who has previously been the focus of scrutiny because of conversations she had with then White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in the weeks following the 2020 e******n in which she encouraged him to continue efforts to overturn the results.
"The clock starts now.
Thirty days, Clarence. Let's do this," Oliver said.
https://www.newsweek.com/clarence-thomas-john-oliver-resign-million-1871091Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas was already a controversial public figure, but 2023 was a brutal year for the far-right jurist’s reputation. Thomas spent much of the year confronting difficult ethics questions that he and his allies struggled to answer.
What emerged was a portrait of a powerful judge who received previously undisclosed benefits from his very wealthy friends, who apparently helped provide Thomas with a more luxurious lifestyle.
It was against this backdrop that The Onion, a satirical outlet, published an amusing item this week. The headline on the comedic item read, “Clarence Thomas Announces 50% Discount On All Favorable Rulings.”
Telling Americans that they must act now to avoid losing out on the chance of a lifetime, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas announced at a press conference Monday a 50% discount on all favorable rulings. “Today and today only, I’m offering half off on tilting any jurisprudence in your favor — all principles must go!” said the associate justice, who went on to list issues including a******n, v****g rights, interstate commerce, social media regulations, and gun ownership by domestic abusers that could now be decided at a steep discount.
Just we’re all clear, the satirical item was a joke. It was intended to be funny. There was no actual press conference, and Thomas isn’t actually selling favorable rulings.
But the fact The Onion published such a joke suggested the satirists at the site believe the controversies surrounding the conservative justice have reached a comedic critical mass.
Indeed, they’re not alone. The week before The Onion’s piece ran, comedian John Oliver, who hosts “Last Week Tonight” on HBO, used his program to offer Thomas $1 million a year — and a surprisingly luxurious R.V. — if the jurist agreed to resign from the Supreme Court.
I’m mindful of the fact that it’s folly to overanalyze jokes but the combination of The Onion’s piece and John Oliver’s segment suggests Supreme Court corruption is becoming a more common cultural punchline. Satirists not only find the subject worth exploring but they also expect the public to be familiar enough with recent revelations for the jokes to land.
And for the high court as an institution, this is nightmarish.
Following a series of reactionary, far-right rulings, including the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the public’s opinion of the Supreme Court has already sunk to striking depths. A growing number of Americans see the justices as political players who draw conclusions based on partisan and ideological preferences, not constitutional law.
It’s against this backdrop that Clarence Thomas is facing so many ethics allegations that jokes about him being corrupt are increasingly commonplace.
It's one thing for Americans to see the justices as hacks. It's something else for Americans to see them as hacks who can be bought for a price.
Vox’s Zack Beauchamp wrote a piece a couple of years ago that included a memorable line: “The Court’s power depends on its legitimacy — on a widespread belief, among both citizens and politicians, that following its orders is the right and necessary thing to do.”
As we discussed soon after, there’s ample evidence from history that when the nation’s founders were creating our system of government, they were mindful of this and feared the court would be seen as weak. Alexander Hamilton wrote in Federalist No. 78:
“The Executive not only dispenses the honors but holds the sword of the community. The legislature not only commands the purse but prescribes the rules by which the duties and rights of every citizen are to be regulated. The judiciary, on the contrary, has no influence over either the sword or the purse; no direction either of the strength or of the wealth of the society; and can take no active resolution wh**ever. It may truly be said to have neither FORCE nor WILL, but merely judgment.”
In other words, all the institution has is its credibility.
Perceptions about its judgment stand as the sole source of the court’s power.
Those perceptions are deteriorating. If Chief Justice John Roberts is wondering whether he needs to get his house in order, I’d be happy to send him a copy of The Onion’s latest Thomas joke or a clip from “Last Week Tonight.”
https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/clarence-thomas-controversies-become-something-new-punchline-rcna140658