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(Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)
As many of you are well aware, Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and a political operative in her own right, testified before the January 6th Committee. That’s because she was out there acting like Forest Gump — getting her paws all over the effort to keep Donald Trump in the presidency despite the result of the election. She sent a series of text messages to Mark Meadows, Trump’s Chief of Staff; she communicated with Coups 4 Dummies lawyer John Eastman; and pestered Wisconsin lawmakers over selecting an alternative slate of electors.
And though the Committee did not refer Ginni to the Department of Justice for criminal prosecution, there’s a lot to unpack in her recently released testimony. The back and forth between Ginni Thomas and Meadows over text in particular caught the attention of the Committee. And with good reason — they’re pretty unhinged. But of note is what her husband — a Supreme Court justice who had *repeatedly* refused to recuse himself on matters related to the 2020 election — was up to at that time.
Hmmm, that’s a very different picture than what she said during her opening statement. Back when the opening statement was the only information about her testimony that we had, she said that she didn’t speak with her husband about her post-election activities… which strained credulity. But with this new information well, it gets even more side eye.
It’s apparent throughout her testimony that Ginni is trying to thread a needle that she doesn’t talk “details” (who she talks to, emails, etc.) of her work with Clarence, but somehow, without knowing the details, her husband provided her with the motivation to “keep holding on” even as the rest of the world knew Trump had lost the election to Joe Biden. And she really tries to sell that there’s a separation of church and state between her work and her husband’s — even saying under oath, “I kind of zone out when it comes to legal issues.” Which… weird flex for an actual attorney (Ginni is a graduate of Creighton University School of Law).
And the public is just supposed to swallow the tale that it is pure coincidence that Clarence has to adjudicate all manner of controversies that intersect with his wife’s interests — even before Ginni’s post-election advocacy made Clarence’s votes on matters related to the January 6th committee super suspect. Remember, she led a grassroots movement in support of Trump’s travel ban, worked for right-wing think tanks, and led efforts to defeat the Affordable Care Act. And if the Thomas household just happens to make ~$700,000 in income for Ginni’s advocacy work that — oopsie! — Clarence forgets to report on disclosure documents, well, what can be done?
A lifetime appointment means never having to say you’re sorry.
But Ginni says she regrets the “tone and content” of her texts — but tellingly testified, “I’m regretting that they became public.” Because it’s not that she tried with increasingly desperate measures to overturn a democratic election, it’s that she got caught.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter @Kathryn1 or Mastodon @Kathryn1@mastodon.social.
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