Clarence Thomas' Problems Just Got Worse

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas appears to be facing growing problems following a new report by Democratic members of the Senate Finance Committee about the financing for his luxury motor home.

Thomas, the present Court's longest-serving member and most senior conservative failed to repay most if not all of a $267,230 loan from a wealthy friend, according to the committee.

The justice has faced calls to resign or be impeached for months amid questions about his relationship with billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow and gifts from other rich acquaintances.

Newsweek reached out to the Supreme Court via email for comment.

An RV Loan

Democrats on the Senate Finance Committee have issued a report saying that Thomas failed to repay of "significant portion" of a 1999 loan provided to him by Anthony Welters, who made his fortune in the healthcare industry, for the purchase of a Prevost Marathon Le Mirage XL recreational vehicle (RV).

Thomas joined the Supreme Court in October 1991.

Under the terms of the loan, Thomas was to make interest-only payments for five years with no money down. After those five years were up, the principal would then come due.

However, the Senate Finance Committee said in a statement on Wednesday that "Thomas made interest payments, but never repaid a substantial portion of the loan."

Thomas may have defied ethics rules that require him to include any "discharge of indebtedness" as a form of income on his annual financial disclosures. The Internal Revenue Service also treats debt that has been forgiven as income.

Senator Ron Wyden, chair of the Finance Committee, was critical of Thomas in a statement on Wednesday.

"Regular Americans don't get wealthy friends to forgive huge amounts of debt so they can buy a second home," Wyden said.

"Justice Thomas should inform the committee exactly how much debt was forgiven and whether he properly reported the loan forgiveness on his tax returns and paid all taxes owed. I have also directed the committee to share our findings with the Judiciary Committee to evaluate the ethics implications of this disclosure," the Oregon senator said.

The committee's investigation was prompted by a report from The New York Times about the loan made to Thomas by Welters. The newspaper reported on Wednesday that the number of interest payments Thomas had made over a nine-year period was unclear.

Welters told The New York Times in a statement this summer that the loan was "satisfied" in 2008 but did not say whether the loan was repaid in full: "I loaned a friend money, as I have other friends and family. We've all been on one side or the other of that equation."

Disclosures

The new Senate Finance Report comes amid ongoing criticism of Justice Thomas and his relationship with wealthy benefactors, including Republican mega-donor Harlan Crow.

Critics questioned Thomas over reports that he accepted luxury trips and private school tuition for his relatives from Crow, which the justice failed to disclose.

Thomas' 2022 financial disclosures showed that the justice received four reimbursements from Crow, but Thomas also said he had no reportable gift.

The four reimbursements from Crow were for transportation, meals and lodging at four different 2022 events that Thomas participated in at venues in Dallas, Texas—where he appeared twice—Salt Lake City, Utah, and Keese Mill, New York.

The disclosures reveal that Thomas flew by private plane during both the events in Dallas and on his return trip in February because of an "unexpected ice storm" and during his May trip due to an "increased security risk" following the leak of the Court's majority opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization.

Billionaires

Justice Thomas has also been under scrutiny for his relationship with other billionaires.

In August, ProPublica reported that Thomas had received vacations, including a previously unreported trip on a yacht around the Bahamas, as well as 26 private jet flights and eight helicopter flights, among other gifts.

ProPublica reported that Thomas had received gifts from three billionaires other than Crow: Berkshire Hathaway executive David Sokol; oil businessman Paul "Tony" Novelly; and H. Wayne Huizenga, who helped grow Blockbuster.

The outlet also said that Thomas may have violated the law by failing to disclose flights, yacht cruises and sports tickets, citing ethics experts.

In a statement issued at the time, Thomas 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."

In September, ProPublica published a further report detailing Thomas' years-long friendships with libertarian billionaires Charles Koch and his late brother, David.

That report revealed that Thomas had attended an annual donor summit hosted by the Koch network—one of the largest and most influential political organizations in the U.S.—and that his regular trips to a private retreat would have allowed the brothers to meet with him in secret.

The Koch brothers had opportunities to meet Thomas during his trips to the Bohemian Grove, an all-male retreat that "attracts some of the nation's most influential corporate and political figures," according to ProPublica.

Thomas has attended the Bohemian Grove for 25 years as a guest of Harlan Crow.