Supreme Court Justice failed to disclose his wifes $700,000 salary from conservative think tank By LAURIE WHITWELL UPDATED: 00:43 EST, 30 September 2011 A group of House Democrats have called for a federal investigation into allegations Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas violated ethics rules by failing to report his wifes income. They say Mr Thomas ticked the none box on his annual financial disclosure form even though his wife, Virginia, was reportedly paid $700,000 between 2003-2007 by conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation. The group of 20 Congressional Democrats led by Louise Slaughter, Representative for New Yorks 28th congressional district, sent a letter to the U.S. Judicial Conference, the governing body for federal courts. Allegations: House Democrats claim Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, left, failed declare that his wife wife Virginia Thomas earned $700,000 from a conservative think tank Allegations: House Democrats claim Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, left, failed declare that his wife wife Virginia Thomas earned $700,000 from a conservative think tank To believe that Justice Thomas didnt know how to fill out a basic disclosure form is absurd, said 82-year-old Mrs Slaughter. She has asked the Judicial Conference of the United States to decide whether the issue should be passed on to the Justice Department for review. The question is whether Mr Thomas failed to comply with the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, which requires all federal judges to disclose their spouses employer. Mr Thomas insisted through a spokesman that any omissions were inadvertent, according to the New York Daily News. He declined further comment. It could come back to haunt him: Rick Perry’s alleged ties to demon seeing and KKK-linked religious leader could derail campaign White House cant find Colorado on map as bungling officials mix up state with Wyoming Cherie sets up firm to cash in on Tory health reforms: Ex-PMs wife plans to open clinics in supermarkets The newspaper highlighted how this is not the first time Mrs Thomass income has been the source of controversy. Mr Thomas was forced to correct 20 years of documents in January after a liberal watchdog pointed out he had not added his wifes place of employment to disclosure forms. He said then that the information was inadvertently omitted due to a misunderstanding of the filing instructions. In the amended reports, Mr Thomas wrote that his wife worked for the Heritage Foundation from 1998 to 2003, the New York Daily News reported, but he did not fill in the five-year gap during which his wife was allegedly paid the six-figure sum from the same think tank. Mr Thomas also neglected to mention that Virginia also worked for Liberty Central, a conservative group with Tea Party ties she co-founded in January 2009. The letter from House Democrats came just days before the Supreme Court returns for the new session, during which it is expected to consider a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the Barack Obamas sweeping health care law. The nine justices of the Supreme Court, who serve without seeking election, will soon have to decide whether to insert themselves into the centre of the presidential campaign next year. The high court begins its new term on Monday, and President Barack Obamas health care overhaul, which affects almost everyone in the country, is squarely in its sights. The Obama administrations request last week that the justices resolve whether the health care law is constitutional makes it more likely than not that they will deliver their verdict by June 2012, just as Obama and his Republican opponent charge toward the fall campaign. Health care is only one of several issues that the court could hear that would make for a fantastic Supreme Court term, said former acting Solicitor General Neal Katyal, now in private practice at the Hogan Lovells law firm. Other high-profile cases on the horizon concern immigration and affirmative action, hot-button issues at any time and only more so in an election year. Less likely, though still with a chance to make it to the court this year are cases involving gay marriage and the landmark Voting Rights Act that some Southern states argue has outlived its usefulness. With the court preparing for such major matters it is vital that the Judicial Conference actively pursue any suspicious actions by Supreme Court Justices, the lawmakers wrote. Mr Thomas is not supposed to let politics affect his legal decision-making. Justice Thomass failure to disclose his wife’s income for his entire tenure on the federal bench and indications that he may have failed to file additional disclosure regarding his travels require the Judicial Conference to refer this matter to the Department of Justice, the letter said. The lawmakers also suggest the issue should be taken up by Attorney General Eric Holder if the Judicial Conference determines that Mr Thomas deliberately failed to report his income and that of his wife. In its letter, the group cites a New York Times report that Thomas benefited from use of a private yacht and airplane owned by Texas real estate tycoon Harlan Crow but failed to disclose this travel as a gift or travel reimbursement on his federal disclosure forms. In a statement, Mrs Slaughter said: The Attorney General would be the appropriate person to investigate the issue of non-disclosure, and that is why my colleagues and I are making this request today. I cannot determine guilt or innocence, but I can request that the government do our due diligence in investigating a situation that strikes me, and many other Members of Congress, as suspicious. Last year, Mrs Thomas landed her husband in hot water when an article written by her calling President Obamas health care reform unconstitutional appeared on the Liberty Central web site. She then stepped down from running the groups daily operations. For more information, please visit: dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2043607/Supreme-Court-Justice-Clarence-Thomas-failed-disclose-wifes-700-000-salary.html#ixzz2wFvnr5Px
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 21:08:57 +0000
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