Ocasio-Cortez calls on Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas to resign

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: Washington Post

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas should resign after it emerged that his wife had pressed the Trump White House in text messages to try to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election.

“If not, his failure to disclose income from right-wing organizations, recuse himself from matters involving his wife, and his vote to block the Jan 6th commission from key information must be investigated and could serve as grounds for impeachment,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted.

Ocasio-Cortez’s call for Thomas to resign — as well as her raising the prospect an impeachment effort — goes further than most other Democrats have in their demands for Thomas to recuse himself from cases involving the 2020 election or the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection after certain texts from his wife came to light last week. Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) also has said Thomas should be impeached.

The texts by Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, a conservative activist and lawyer by training, revealed that she had reached out to then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows multiple times in the weeks after the 2020 election, pushing the baseless claim that the election had been stolen and urging Trump officials not to accept the results. At the time, President Donald Trump and his allies had vowed to take their efforts to overturn the election results to the Supreme Court.

Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ocasio-cortez-calls-on-supreme-court-justice-clarence-thomas-to-resign/ar-AAVDnXm

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While I don't disagree, you know he's not going to.

[Effete Snob]

1. He'll get right on that

[Polybius]

2. Yeah

That'll get him to go.

[Magoo48]

9. I glad she's on record.

I wish the rest of them would go on record more often. I like knowing where they stand.

[lagomorph777]

24. Yeah, that would be good. Clarence is an insurrectionist. 14th Amendment applies.

No way he's not up to his eyeballs in coup plotting, just like his wife.

[kysrsoze]

4. Do you have any idea what conflict of interest and the appearance of impropriety are?

There's obviously much more to this than his wife's personal views. We also have this quaint concept of independence and oversight between the three branches of government. From an ethical standpoint, he is tainted in multiple realms and if he had any integrity, he would resign.

[2naSalit]

8. +1

I'm impressed, someone who still knows those terms!

Appearance of impropriety was a career killer back in the day.

[kysrsoze]

14. Thank you. Unfortunately, most people have no clue what it means these days.

[2naSalit]

15. I've noticed.

It was one of the first casualties of the age of tfg.

[Evolve Dammit]

26. Before or after the White House Ethics rules/training were eliminated? Media was on that too....

[Rebl2]

32. What

are these words integrity and ethical you speak of? Did not know it still existed.

[marybourg]

5. No, he should resign because of his wife's documented behavior.

[bucolic_frolic]

10. Personal? Her views are financial and political.

[Cozmo]

16. ginni paid for the buses to Stop the Steal attendees

This is more than her personal views. She tried to overturn an election, his bias is evident.

[MontanaMama]

19. That isn't the point being made here.

[dem4decades]

6. Bless her heart but he's not going anywhere. Shit, if he died they'd prop him in his chair.

[FailureToCommunicate]

29. They may have done that already. He never talks, or opens his eyes.

[dem4decades]

35. I've seen him rated higher than Aieto, Sotomayor and Kavanaugh, which I didn't understand.

I thought he was the worst, at least between Aieto and Thomas

[2naSalit]

7. He needs to.

[poli-junkie]

11. I'm glad she said it (what every Dem is thinking) out loud.

[Marthe48]

12. More voices like this!

Get the rot off the Supreme Court.

I can see why there aren't any guidelines to be sure Surpeme Court judges don't cross any lines. Up until thomas, actual law-abiding knowledgeable legal giants were selected to serve on the bench. Now it's who you know, or who ya blow. As long as criminals get selected to the bench, we better get some guidelines. JHC

[jalan48]

13. +1

Thanks AOC!

[MineralMan]

17. Well, that does it, then. He's as good as gone.

[Rebl2]

33. YEP

Sarcasm thingy

[panfluteman]

18. Hooray! AOC Finally Went There!!!

We definitely need more voices like hers in Congress. Perhaps she will inspire others to speak out and go there like she has. Perhaps the one with real balls is - a woman! AOC's willingness to take bold progressive positions makes her a rising star in Congress who is the one to watch. After all, the stakes couldn't be higher - it's our own democracy that's on the line, for heaven's sake!

[FoxNewsSucks]

20. Good for her!

Ilhan Omar has also called for his impeachment.

Why does it seem to be mainly the "leftists" who are in the right place regarding the lying corrupt tool Clarence Thomas? He should be removed immediately, and prosecuted for any lawbreaking along with his criminal wife.

[druidity33]

21. Someone had to say it. Was she the first? nt.

[Midnight Writer]

22. Good move. Keep the story alive for another news cycle. Keep it up!

We need to make sure this story keeps getting repeated and reported on day after day.

Of course, he won't step down. The goal is to focus attention on the corruption in the GOP.

Keep swinging that hammer!

[BigDemVoter]

23. I applaud her efforts, but that hog will do nothing of the sort.

He has no integrity at all--none.

[The Grand Illuminist]

25. Gotta be realistic

He ain't going nowhere, and don't try to impeach because there are no votes to convict in the Senate to remove him.

[Torchlight]

27. If nothing else, Rep. Ocasio-Cortez is helping this

stay in the news cycle; and the longer this remains in cycle, the more people will see it.

Playing against my original opinion of her (inaccurate and biased), I've now come to believe she's an impressive force who has learned the system quickly.

[ShazzieB]

37. Yes, helping this stay in the news cycle, and

also helping to keep holding his feet to the fire.

This is a guy who does not care for criticism, much less being publicly embarrassed. If he can't be persuaded to resign, he can darn sure be made to squirm.

[Evolve Dammit]

28. Imagine the outrage on the right. AOC speaks for me. Cause I can't. Thank you Rep. Ocasio-Cortez.

We need more. This is utter bullshit from a "Justice" who never should have sat on the bench.

[bucolic_frolic]

30. A very important election year issue, this puts ethics, transparency, integrity in the spotlight

[denbot]

31. Fuck yeah, there is a reason for some here to be "concerned" over AOC.

She is a big “D” democrat.

[JohnnyRingo]

34. I was wondering how she would come down on this.

If only she had ten percent of the influence the right thinks she has.

[L. Coyote]

36. I say resign. What Thomas did by not recusing was a crime. 28 U.S. Code § 455

28 U.S. Code § 455 - Disqualification of justice, judge, or magistrate judge

(a) Any justice, judge, or magistrate judge of the United States shall disqualify himself in any proceeding in which his impartiality might reasonably be questioned.
(b) He shall also disqualify himself in the following circumstances:
(1) Where he has a personal bias or prejudice concerning a party, or personal knowledge of disputed evidentiary facts concerning the proceeding;
(2) Where in private practice he served as lawyer in the matter in controversy, or a lawyer with whom he previously practiced law served during such association as a lawyer concerning the matter, or the judge or such lawyer has been a material witness concerning it;
(3) Where he has served in governmental employment and in such capacity participated as counsel, adviser or material witness concerning the proceeding or expressed an opinion concerning the merits of the particular case in controversy;
(4) He knows that he, individually or as a fiduciary, or his spouse or minor child residing in his household, has a financial interest in the subject matter in controversy or in a party to the proceeding, or any other interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding;
(5) He or his spouse, or a person within the third degree of relationship to either of them, or the spouse of such a person:
(i) Is a party to the proceeding, or an officer, director, or trustee of a party;
(ii) Is acting as a lawyer in the proceeding;
(iii) Is known by the judge to have an interest that could be substantially affected by the outcome of the proceeding;
(iv) Is to the judge’s knowledge likely to be a material witness in the proceeding.

[onenote]

42. 28 USC 455 is not a criminal statute

It does not make it a "crime" for a judge not to recuse himself or herself. The statute has been on the books in one form or another for many, many years and there have been a number of cases brought where it has been alleged that a judge failed to recuse in accordance with Section 455. None of those cases were brought by the Department of Justice. Rather, they are always brought by a litigant who has unsuccessfully sought to have a judge recuse himself or herself and/or cases in which a litigant, after the fact, argues that they were harmed because the judge had a conflict of interest requiring recusal. Where the court reviewing the allegation of a failure to comply with Section 455 agrees that recusal was required, the remedy is to require the recusal or, if after the fact, reverse the outcome and remand for a new trial with a different judge.

Even if the January 6 Committee had known of Ginni Thomas's emails when the case made it to the Supreme Court, they presumably could have filed something arguing that Thomas should have recused, but they didn't and since they won the case 8-1, they probably saw no reason to do so after the fact.

[L. Coyote]

46. What Clarence Thomas Did Was Illegal Says Laurence Tribe

[onenote]

52. Not all violations of law are treated as "crimes."

Tribe never claims that Thomas committed a "crime" for which he could be prosecuted. At most, according to Tribe, Thomas could be impeached, because impeachment isn't limited to criminal violations, but that's not going to happen (as Tribe acknowledges). Tribe also suggests that because the Chief Justice has control over whether Thomas is assigned responsibility for writing the opinion in cases where Roberts and Thomas are both in the majority, Roberts could "punish" Thomas by restricting the cases assigned to him for opinion writing. But that's not much of a deterrent since it doesn't stop Thomas from writing a concurring opinion that the other justices might well join. (In addition, where Thomas is in the majority and Roberts is in the minority, Roberts can't stop Thomas from assigning the opinion to himself). As an aside, there is a conscious effort to be spread the opinion writing duties equally -- in the most recent term, Roberts authored 7 opinions, Amy Barrett authored five, and each of the other seven Justices authored six).

As is the case with instances of noncompliance with procedural rules governing the conduct of judicial proceedings, there is a remedy, as i mentioned, which would be for a litigant to file a motion with the Court demanding that Thomas recuse himself. Whether the Court would entertain the motion and whether they would grant it is far from clear and there is no recourse if they decide not to do so.

[LaMouffette]

38. Love, love, love AOC! She is fearless.

[Pepsidog]

39. Me too. Resign Clarence, you are a traitor to your race and country.

[Ford_Prefect]

40. The people who've invested so much money and political capital to build the present SCOTUS will

never allow that to happen.

The good folks behind the Council for National Policy, The Federalist Society, ALEC, and several other RW front groups have one primary agenda and that requires Justice Thomas be on the bench.

Thomas may be impeached for cause but he will not resign.

[marie999]

41. I doubt he will be impeached unless there is definite evidence that he committed a crime.

And if he is impeached he will not be found guilty of anything. And he doesn't care what people say about him, he has a job for life.

[cannabis_flower]

43. Would be nice

But I bet he won’t even recuse himself

[Emile]

44. He should save face and resign!

[brooklynite]

45. And...?

He won't resign. The House won't Impeach him.

[Dr. Strange]

47. She should contact her representative...

and have them initiate impeachment proceedings in the House.

[ck4829]

48. K&R

[Emile]

50. Everyone in Congress should be demanding this!

[samsingh]

51. Good for her

[myohmy2]

53. there's...

...an urgency here that I'm glad AOC shares...

...we must act like our democracy and institutions are being attacked from all angles...

...because they are...

...