Justice Thomas told lawmaker 1 or more justices might resign over low pay, raising concern about conservative retirements
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas poses for an official portrait in the Supreme Court building Oct. 7, 2022, in Washington, D.C. According to a new report by ProPublica, Thomas told a Republican lawmaker in 2000 that one or more justices might leave the Supreme Court if Congress didn’t authorize a pay raise. Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images.
Justice Clarence Thomas told a Republican lawmaker in 2000 that one or more justices might leave the U.S. Supreme Court if Congress didn’t authorize a pay raise, according to a new report by ProPublica.
The conversation led then-U.S. Rep. Cliff Stearns of Florida, a Republican, to think that Thomas was among the justices who might leave.
In a January 2000 letter that Stearns wrote to Thomas after the discussion, Stearns said he intended to look into a bill to raise the salaries of Supreme Court justices.
The conversation between Thomas and Stearns happened during a flight home from a conservative conference where Thomas was a speaker. At the time, justices earned $173,600 per year, which is the equivalent of more than $300,000 today, according to ProPublica.
Word of the conversation reached L. Ralph Mecham, then the director of the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, who wrote to then-Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist in a June 2000 letter. Mecham said his office had been asked to help draft the legislation. Mecham expressed concern about decoupling pay for justices from that of other federal judges and Congress, and he asked for Rehnquist’s advice on how to handle “this delicate matter.”
Mecham indicated that it wouldn’t take long for Democrats to recognize that the prime beneficiaries of a Supreme Court pay raise would be Thomas and then-Justice Antonin Scalia, making liberal lawmakers reluctant to act on legislation.
Scalia “had nine children and was also one of the less wealthy justices,” ProPublica explains.
It’s unknown whether Rehnquist answered, but he did call for higher judicial pay in his annual year-end report.
Thomas also had private conversations about removing the ban on justices being paid for speeches, the article reports.
According to ProPublica, public records at the time “suggest a degree of financial strain” for Thomas. When Thomas and his wife, Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, purchased a $522,000 home after he joined the high court, their down payment was only $8,000. They later borrowed another $100,000 on their house and took out a $50,000 consumer loan. Thomas also became legal guardian for his grandnephew and sent him to private school.
Thomas’ financial issues eased in 2003 when he received part of a $1.5 million advance for his memoir. The ban on speaking fees was never lifted, however, and the justices never got a major raise.
“But in the years that followed,” according to ProPublica, “Thomas accepted a stream of gifts from friends and acquaintances that appears to be unparalleled in the modern history of the Supreme Court. Some defrayed living expenses large and small—private school tuition, vehicle batteries, tires. Other gifts from a coterie of ultrarich men supplemented his lifestyle, such as free international vacations on the private jet and superyacht of Dallas real estate billionaire Harlan Crow.
“Precisely what led so many people to offer Thomas money and other gifts remains an open question. There’s no evidence the justice ever raised the specter of resigning with Crow or his other wealthy benefactors.”
Thomas didn’t respond to ProPublica’s questions.
See also:
“Justice Thomas gained access to ‘wealthy and powerful friends’ through Horatio Alger Association”
“Justice Thomas had more than one billionaire benefactor; friends lavished him with 38 vacations”
“BigLaw CEO bought property partly owned by Gorsuch, who didn’t disclose the buyer”
“Justice Thomas’ financial disclosure issues referred to committee of federal judges”
“Justice Thomas listed income from a real-estate firm even after it closed in 2006”
“Would a mandated Supreme Court ethics code violate separation of powers? Witnesses differ”
“Wife of Chief Justice Roberts generated $10M in commissions in this job, whistleblower says”
