Controversy surrounding financial disclosures of Supreme Court justices highlights the importance of transparency and accountability in government officials.
Critics argue that annual reports required from justices do not provide enough transparency, allowing for potential conflicts of interest.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed two trips gifted by major GOP donor Harlan Crow in 2019 - one to Bali and one to a private club possibly alluding to Bohemian Grove.
Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson disclosed receiving four tickets to Beyoncé's concert worth over $3,700 and a six-figure payment from Penguin Random House for her upcoming memoir.
Supreme Court Justices Ketanji Brown Jackson and Clarence Thomas made headlines this week for disclosing financial information related to gifts and book deals. Jackson reported receiving four tickets to Beyoncé's concert last year, worth over $3,700, as well as a six-figure payment from Penguin Random House for her upcoming memoir. Thomas disclosed two trips gifted by major GOP donor Harlan Crow in 2019 - one to Bali and one to a private club possibly alluding to Bohemian Grove.
The financial disclosures of the Supreme Court justices have been a topic of controversy in the past. While they are required to file annual reports detailing their income, gifts, and other financial transactions, some critics argue that these reports do not provide enough transparency and may allow for conflicts of interest.
Jackson's disclosure of Beyoncé tickets and book deal comes after similar disclosures from other justices in recent years. Justice Brett Kavanaugh reported receiving $340,000 for a legal memoir, while Sonia Sotomayor and Neil Gorsuch also reported income from book deals.
Thomas's disclosure of trips gifted by Crow has been the subject of scrutiny in the past. ProPublica reported last year that Thomas accepted vacations from Crow nearly every year for two decades, but did not report the travel in his annual financial disclosures until pressure from media reports.
The controversy surrounding these financial disclosures highlights the importance of transparency and accountability in government officials, particularly those with significant decision-making power like Supreme Court justices. It also underscores the need for clear guidelines and enforcement mechanisms to ensure that conflicts of interest are minimized and public trust is maintained.
Clarence Thomas disclosed luxury vacations paid for by Harlan Crow that he had yet to acknowledge in the official record.
Thomas belatedly reported travel paid for by others from 2019: a hotel room in Bali and food and lodging in Sonoma county, California.
Thomas sold his mother’s home in Savannah, Georgia, to Crow last year and disclosed the transaction after ProPublica’s report.
Thomas faced pressure to recuse himself on cases involving the January 6 attempt to reverse the 2020 election result over his wife’s ties to the right, but he has refused so far.
Thomas received a total of $2.4m in gifts over a period, which is ten times what his fellow justices combined received.
Accuracy
] Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed luxury vacations paid for by Harlan Crow that he had yet to acknowledge in the official record.[
Justice Clarence Thomas received two gifted trips from major GOP donor Harlan Crow in 2019 - one to Bali and one to a private club possibly alluding to Bohemian Grove.
Justice Clarence Thomas sold his mother’s home in Savannah, Georgia, to Crow last year and disclosed the transaction after ProPublica’s report.
Deception
(30%)
The article reports on Clarence Thomas's failure to disclose luxury trips paid for by Harlan Crow in his financial disclosure records. This is an example of selective reporting as the article only reports details that support the author's position of Thomas being deceitful. The author also editorializes by stating 'Thomas faced pressure to recuse himself on cases involving the January 6 attempt to reverse the 2020 election result over his wife’s ties to the right, but he has refused so far.' This is an opinion and not a fact. The article also uses emotional manipulation by implying that Thomas's actions are scandalous and unethical.
But Crow was affiliated with Club for Growth, which has lobbied the court with amicus briefs while Thomas has sat on it
Thomas faced pressure to recuse himself on cases involving the January 6 attempt to reverse the 2020 election result over his wife’s ties to the right, but he has refused so far.
The right-leaning justice had yet to acknowledge in the official record that he took luxury vacations paid for by the conservative billionaire, Harlan Crow
Fallacies
(85%)
The author makes an appeal to authority by referencing ProPublica's Pulitzer Prize-winning reporting and the Guardian's reporting on Thomas and Crow. The author also mentions that Thomas faced pressure due to his relationship with Crow, but does not explicitly state a fallacy related to this information.
“ProPublica’s reporting on Thomas and Crow won the Pulitzer prize for public service this year.”
“Some experts have noted it does not go far enough and there is no way to adequately enforce it.”
Bias
(80%)
The author, Sam Levine, demonstrates a clear political bias by repeatedly criticizing Clarence Thomas and his relationship with Harlan Crow. The author also uses language that depicts Thomas as having engaged in unethical behavior by failing to disclose trips paid for by Crow. This bias is evident in the following examples:
But Crow was affiliated with Club for Growth, which has lobbied the court with amicus briefs while Thomas has sat on it, the Guardian reported last year.
ProPublica also reported last year that Samuel Alito, another of the court’s conservative justices, flew on a private jet and vacationed with a billionaire who had business before the court.
The newest justice, Ketanji Brown Jackson, collected nearly $900,000 last year for her upcoming memoir.
, Thomas sold his mother’s home in Savannah, Georgia, to Crow (Thomas disclosed the transaction last year after the report).
Justice Clarence Thomas disclosed two gifted trips from major GOP donor Harlan Crow in 2019 - one to Bali and one to a private club possibly alluding to Bohemian Grove.
Accuracy
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson received Beyoncé tickets worth over $3,700 (more than £2,900)
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson made over $893,000 (over £702,000) for a book advance for a yet-to-be-released memoir
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains an example of a dichotomous depiction and an appeal to authority. It presents Justice Clarence Thomas as potentially benefiting from undisclosed gifts from a wealthy donor with ties to the GOP, implying impropriety without providing concrete evidence. Additionally, it references the financial disclosures of other justices and their book deals, which could be seen as an appeal to authority.
The article implies that Justice Clarence Thomas may have received undisclosed gifts from a wealthy GOP donor with ties to a private club like Bohemian Grove. (Paragraph 6)
The article references the financial disclosures of other justices and their book deals, suggesting that these are standard practice and implying an appeal to authority. (Paragraph 9)
Bias
(95%)
The author makes no overtly biased statements in the article. However, she does include a reference to Harlan Crow being a 'major GOP donor' when describing the trips taken by Justice Thomas. While this is technically true, it could be perceived as an attempt to imply that there is something nefarious about these trips due to Crow's political affiliation. This implies a slight bias towards implying wrongdoing on the part of Justice Thomas.
The trips were gifted from major GOP donor Harlan Crow
