US Senate Democrats demand investigation into trips by Clarence Thomas

By Rabia Iclal Turan

WASHINGTON (AA) - Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee sent a letter Tuesday to Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts, demanding he investigate reports that Justice Clarence Thomas accepted luxury trips.

“We urge you to immediately open such an investigation and take all needed action to prevent further misconduct,” said the letter.

Adding that the Senate Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing regarding the “need to restore confidence in the Supreme Court’s ethical standards,” they said: “And if the Court does not resolve this issue on its own, the Committee will consider legislation to resolve it.”

“But you do not need to wait for Congress to act to undertake your own investigation into the reported conduct and to ensure that it cannot happen again. We urge you to do so,” they said.

The letter came after a report was published last week by investigative journalism organization, ProPublica, which said Thomas accepted luxury trips from Republican megadonor Harlan Crows for decades.

It revealed that Thomas and his wife, Virginia, had luxury trips -- including on Crow's mega yacht and stayed at his lavish properties -- subsidized by the conservative businessman.

Thomas defended himself, calling Crow and his wife, Kathy, as his family's "dearest friends" in a statement.

"As friends do, we have joined them on a number of family trips during the more than quarter century we have known them," he said. "Early in my tenure at the Court, I sought guidance from my colleagues and others in the judiciary, and was advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable.”​​​​​​​