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‘Grave Concerns’: House Democrats Urge Chief Justice to Formally Investigate Clarence Thomas

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Eighteen House Democrats, all former prosecutors, judges, and law enforcement officials, have sent a detailed, eight-page letter to Chief Justice John Roberts urging him to create an independent group to investigate Justice Clarence Thomas over “recent allegations of ethical violations and conflicts of interests” involving his relationship with a billionaire GOP donor who reportedly had business before the Supreme Court.

They ask at the conclusion of the investigation the report be made public.

The group’s letter also refers to “serious allegations of ethical improprieties” by both Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito. NBC News was first to report on the letter.

Headed by U.S. Rep. Dan Goldman (D-NY), the group’s letter to Chief Justice Roberts expresses their “grave concerns about the Supreme Court’s lack of internal structure to properly enforce the ethical standards to which you have repeatedly asserted that the Court adheres.”

READ MORE: ‘Jumping the Shark’: George Conway Slams Trump for ‘Stupid’ Defamation Countersuit Against E. Jean Carroll

“It has become abundantly clear to us that the current internal mechanism employed by the Court is not sufficient to prevent either the real, or appearance of, impropriety of its members or to hold to account justices who break ethics rules. This has further undermined public confidence in the institution, which is now at an all-time low.”

They warn that the reports about Thomas and Alito “raise serious questions about the integrity and legitimacy of the Court. As Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, it is your obligation to preserve and uphold the American people’s trust in the Court.”

In addition to the billionaire Harlan Crow, the letter includes references to Ginni Thomas, the far-right wing activist and lobbyist who is married to Justice Thomas, and former Federalist Society vice president Leonard Leo. It also mentions the January 6 insurrection.

“We are especially concerned about the numerous recent reports of Justice Clarence Thomas’s highly questionable ethical decisions, including conflicts of interests related to his wife and other beneficial financial relationships with billionaire and political donor Harlan Crow and Leonard Leo, who oversees a multi-billion-dollar dark money operation to influence the Supreme Court. These include allegations that Justice Thomas’s wife, Ginni, may have had a vested interest in cases that came before Court related to the January 6 insurrection, which Justice Thomas nonetheless ruled on (in favor of Ginni Thomas’s preferred outcome).”

READ MORE: Supreme Court Could Soon Take Hatchet to Anti-Discrimination Laws Based on Entirely Fabricated Case

It goes on to note that “supplemental reporting indicates that Ginni Thomas may have been paid by Mr. Leo, who has substantial business before the Court, and that Justice Thomas accepted gifts and benefits from Mr. Crow that he failed to properly disclose.”

The 18 Democrats also point to the fact that not one but two Supreme Court decisions have been leaked, both involving majority opinions written by Justice Alito.

“Another troubling incident involving Justice Alito occurred in 2014, when Reverend Robert L. Schenck, an evangelical minister and former anti-abortion advocate, allegedly received advance notice of a decision on Burwell v. Hobby Lobby. As was the case in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Org., the leaked Hobby Lobby decision was written by Justice Samuel A. Alito.”

The group concludes, “If, as you say, the Court is capable of upholding the highest ethical standards, then we hope you will accept our recommendations to establish an independent and transparent investigative body and separate ethics counsel to regain the trust and confidence of the American people.”

You can read the full letter here.

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Six D’s and an F: Latino Focus Group Members All Regret Their Votes for Trump

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Many of the Latino voters who ran to Donald Trump, helping him win the 2024 election, now say they regret their vote. Trump’s approval rating among Latino and Hispanic voters is now underwater by 23 points, according to a poll by Somos Votantes and the Global Strategy Group, and he is “bleeding” Latino voters, according to The Bulwark, which hosted a focus group last week.

Newsweek reported that the poll results “closely mirrored a CNN survey last week showing similar declines in Trump’s approval among Hispanic voters. The latest Cygnal survey, conducted August 7-9 also showed Trump’s favorability with Hispanics has dropped significantly over the summer.”

The Bulwark reported that for their focus group members, “Every single one of the seven participants said they regretted voting for Trump.”

READ MORE: Navarro Demands Left Face ‘Accountability’ for MAGA’s Own Misdeeds—and Kirk Assassination

“The participants said they were angry over the state of the economy and frustrated by Trump’s handling of immigration and deportations,” The Bulwark’s Adrian Carrasquillo reported. “Asked to give the president a letter grade for his term thus far, six gave him D’s and one gave an F. Asked later about her grade, one participant who gave a D said she was just trying to be nice.”

While the tangible, measurable effects of the Trump economy appear to weigh heavily on some of the participants, several “painted a picture of a nation struggling to grapple with a darker blend of politics and open divisiveness from its leaders.”

“I think a lot of people are a lot more hateful, they feel they can be a lot more open about it, because they see it everywhere so much that no one is really trying to be nice and get along and respect differences,” a participant, from Colorado said. “They think it’s okay to pass their judgments and stereotypes willy-nilly because no one does anything about it, because they see the people in control doing it.”

Another participant said, “I live in America, I don’t want to be in a dictatorship. I still want to be in a democratic nation that has rules, has regulations. . . . This is America, we gotta treat people with respect and dignity and I think a lot of that has gone out the window.”

READ MORE: ‘This Isn’t a Close Call’: Dem Floats Shutdown After Trump’s Reporter Threat

Still another called Trump “super-extremist” and accused him of “ignoring history.”

“He’s taking down government history websites, he’s changing [the Department of Defense] to the Department of War. It seems that power has taken control of his mind where he thinks he can change the Constitution and control the entire country by himself.”

But the participants’ anti-Trump sentiment should not lead Democratic supporters to rejoice.

“While every single member of the focus group said they regretted their vote, none said they would back Kamala Harris in a hypothetical election rerun. Instead, they all said they would support a third party candidate or stay home.”

READ MORE: ‘You Have a Lot of Hate’: Trump Threatens Reporter After Hate Speech Question

 

Image via Reuters

 

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Navarro Demands Left Face ‘Accountability’ for MAGA’s Own Misdeeds—and Kirk Assassination

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Senior Trump White House Counselor Peter Navarro is raging at “they” — seemingly Democrats and the left — for consequences he and fellow MAGA allies have brought on themselves, including prison time. And he appeared to blame the left for the assassination of Charlie Kirk as well.

In a Fox Business interview, Navarro, who has promoted conspiracy theories, highlighted on Tuesday his prison sentence and that of Steve Bannon, both for contempt of Congress. Both were sentenced to several months in prison.

But Navarro’s long litany of complaints went further. He blasted the disbarment recommendation of coup memo author John Eastman, and that of Jeff Clark—who reportedly “tried to help Trump subvert the 2020 election.”

He also suggested that “they” attempted to “bankrupt” former Trump personal attorney Rudy Giuliani.

READ MORE: ‘This Isn’t a Close Call’: Dem Floats Shutdown After Trump’s Reporter Threat

And he appeared to blame the assassination of conservative commentator and activist Charlie Kirk on the left.

“As you know, ‘I Went to Prison, So You Won’t Have To’— it’s the book I wrote, and it’s just a warning,” Navarro told host Maria Bartiromo.

“Everybody involved in my imprisonment was a Democrat,” Navarro alleged, claiming he was a “political prisoner.”

“I’ll tell you this, this is the age of accountability, okay?” he declared. “If we don’t hold these people accountable, they’ll do it again.”

Navarro said that his book is “a warning to everybody in America that if they didn’t come for me and Donald Trump, put the Bannon in prison, bankrupt Rudy Giuliani, take away the law cards of Jeff Clark and John Eastman and kill, kill, kill Charlie Kirk, and try to kill President Trump — twice.”

READ MORE: ‘You Have a Lot of Hate’: Trump Threatens Reporter After Hate Speech Question

“There has to be accountability, ’cause they’re just gonna keep doing it,” Navarro declared, not specifying who “they” are, while having talked about Democrats.

Bartiromo chimed in, saying, “I mean, the level, the level that they have stooped to is so extraordinary, and it’s unbelievable. I mean, truly is unbelievable.”

She also did not explain who “they” are.

Navarro is also one of many on the right who appear to be placing blame on the left, as an entity, for the assassination of Charlie Kirk.

The Trump administration, and especially the President, has directly or indirectly blamed the “radical left” for the assassination of Charlie Kirk, even as the suspected shooter’s motives and political beliefs, if any, remain unclear.

“For years,” Trump said in an address from the Oval Office the night of Kirk’s killing, “those on the radical left have compared wonderful Americans, like Charlie, to Nazis and the world’s worst mass murderers and criminals. This kind of rhetoric is directly responsible for the terrorism that we’re seeing in our country today, and it must stop right now.”

Vice President JD Vance echoed Trump’s remarks on Monday, saying, “we have to talk about this incredibly destructive movement of left-wing extremism that has grown up over the last few years, and I believe is part of the reason why Charlie was killed by an assassin’s bullet.”

Attorney General Pam Bondi on Monday declared, “Yes, who killed Charlie [Kirk]?” Left wing radicals. And they will be held accountable.”

READ MORE: ‘Not a Monarchy’: Trump’s Lawsuit Against NYT Sparks Mockery — and Free Speech Warnings

 

 

 

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‘This Isn’t a Close Call’: Dem Floats Shutdown After Trump’s Reporter Threat

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A prominent Democratic Congressman is threatening to vote to shut down the federal government in response to President Donald Trump’s threat to target a journalist over a question about hate speech.

ABC News’ Jonathan Karl asked the President about Attorney General Pam Bondi’s claim that she will target those who engage in hate speech — which is largely constitutionally protected. Trump suggested the administration could go after the reporter.

“We’ll probably go after people like you because you treat me so unfairly. It’s hate. You have a lot of hate in your heart,” the President told Karl.

The federal government is again is poised to shut down unless Speaker of the House Mike Johnson can pass legislation to fund the government. The bill, a 91-page continuing resolution, was published Tuesday afternoon. It pushes a shutdown deadline from October 1 to November 21.

READ MORE: ‘You Have a Lot of Hate’: Trump Threatens Reporter After Hate Speech Question

According to Politico, the bill would “provide $30 million for lawmaker security and a total of $58 million in security assistance the White House requested for the Supreme Court and executive branch.”

“While GOP leaders plan to call a floor vote later this week, it’s still unclear whether Democrats will vote in support of the bill, with President Donald Trump calling on congressional Republicans to stiff-arm the minority party in government funding negotiations.”

In response to Trump’s comment, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell asked, “How can we fund this? I am being asked this week to fund a government that locks up a reporter Trump doesn’t like. This isn’t a close call folks.”

The Trump administration has not yet actually locked up a reporter because the President does not like them, but critics, including California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, appeared to suggest that was the implied threat that Trump was making.

“Donald Trump says he will send the DOJ after the press if they say things he doesn’t like,” Newsom declared.

CNN chief political analyst David Axelrod asked, “So is the AG going to go after journalists who displease the @POTUS?”

READ MORE: ‘Not a Monarchy’: Trump’s Lawsuit Against NYT Sparks Mockery — and Free Speech Warnings

 

Image via Reuters

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