Progressive Democrats call for Clarence Thomas impeachment after reported undisclosed gifts from GOP megadonor

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and other congressional progressive lawmakers called for the impeachment of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas amid reports he failed to disclose gifts he accepted from a Republican megadonor. 

“This is beyond party or partisanship. This degree of corruption is shocking – almost cartoonish,” Ocasio-Cortez tweeted Thursday. “Thomas must be impeached. Barring some dramatic change, this is what the Roberts court will be known for: rank corruption, erosion of democracy, and the stripping of human rights.”

A report by ProPublica said Thomas took luxury trips on yachts and private jets owned by Texas businessman Harlan Crow without reporting them on financial disclosure forms. A 2019 trip to Indonesia, the story detailed, could have cost more than $500,000 had Thomas chartered the plane and yacht himself, the report said.

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Supreme Court justices are required to file annual financial disclosure reports, which ask them about gifts they’ve received. 

Reps. Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., both called for Thomas’ impeachment, with Omar tweeting: “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Clarence Thomas needs to be impeached.”

Other Democrats said the high court should have higher ethical standards. 

“Justice Thomas’ lavish undisclosed trips with a GOP mega-donor undermine the trust that our country places in the Supreme Court,” Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said. “Time for an enforceable code of conduct for Justices.”

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., noted that federal judges are bound by a code of conduct “except 9.”

“It’s no longer ok for the Supreme Court to be the only federal court without a binding ethical code,” Murphy tweeted. “For over a decade, every Congress I’ve introduced the Supreme Court Ethics Act. It’s time to pass it.”

Fox News Digital has reached out to the high court. 

Last month, the federal judiciary beefed up disclosure requirements for all judges, including the high court justices, although overnight stays at personal vacation homes owned by friends remain exempt from disclosure.

Last year, questions about Thomas’ ethics arose when it was disclosed that he did not step away from election cases following the 2020 election despite the fact that his wife, conservative activist Virginia Thomas, reached out to lawmakers and the White House to urge defiance of the election results.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.