Senate Democrats planned to vote to subpoena Leonard Leo and Harlan Crow as part of an ongoing ethics probe into Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito. But then, they didn’t.1
Democrats folded in the face of the threats of Republicans like Lindsey Graham and Josh Hawley who promised messy, vendetta-filled retaliation.
Leo is the chief architect of the right-wing Supreme Court and Harlan Crow is a billionaire GOP mega-donor and close friend of Clarence Thomas. Democrats can’t back down. They must subpoena Leo and Crow to find out the extent of corruption on the Supreme Court.
Sign the petition to Senate Democrats: Subpoena Leonard Leo and Harlan Crow!
Leo and Crow’s shady involvement with SCOTUS and certain conservative justices has been heavily reported on, and must be officially investigated.
A new ProPublica expose revealed just how central Leo is to the right-wing’s domination of United States courts. From his post atop the conservative legal think tank The Federalist Society, Leo guided Supreme Court appointments under Bush Jr. and Trump, organized luxury trips for Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, oversaw well over $1.6 billion in funding for right-wing dark money groups, and much more.2
Then there’s Crow. Over more than two decades, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas reportedly accepted luxury trips virtually every year from GOP mega-donor, and billionaire Dallas businessman, Harlan Crow without disclosing them.3
Superyachts, private jets, and resorts — all of it included. These frequent luxury trips break the law according to two ethics experts.4 And yet, for more than four years, the Supreme Court has failed to adopt an ethics code and enforce ethical norms despite a series of serious controversies.5
Not only has Crow given massive sums to the GOP, he’s donated big money, according to FEC records, to conservative Democrats like Joe Manchin, Kyrsten Sinema, Josh Gottenheimer, and Henry Cuellar.
Between the two of them, Leo’s injection of huge sums into our legal system has led directly to our current right-wing court that’s gutted our reproductive rights, decimated environmental protections, and more. And Crow’s involvement with Thomas raises extreme ethical concerns.
Senate Democrats can’t give in to the threats of the GOP. They must get to the bottom of corruption on the Supreme Court and hold Leo and Crow accountable.
Add your name: Subpoena Leonard Leo and Harlan Crow!
Sources:
- CNN, “Senate Democrats back down on Supreme Court ethics subpoenas after GOP threats,” November 9, 2023.
- ProPublica, “We Don’t Talk About Leonard: The Man Behind the Right’s Supreme Court Supermajority,” October 11, 2023.
- ProPublica, “Clarence Thomas and the Billionaire,” April 6, 2023.
- Ibid.
- Forbes, “Supreme Court Justices Reportedly Can’t Figure Out How To Adopt Ethics Code Amid Controversies,” February 9, 2023.