Demand Progress

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary committee voted 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 never issued the subpoenas.¹ It’s been over two months. What’s the hold up?

Around the initial vote, Republicans like Lindsey Graham and Josh Hawley promised messy, vendetta-filled retaliation if Democrats voted to subpoena their conservative allies.²

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 must continue their SCOTUS ethics probe and issue the subpoenas for Leo and Crow.

Sign the petition to Senate Democrats: Issue the subpoenas for Leonard Leo and Harlan Crow. Investigate the extent of corruption on the Supreme Court!

Leo and Crow’s shady involvement with SCOTUS and certain conservative justices has been heavily reported on, and must be officially investigated.

A recent 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.³

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.⁴

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 must continue their investigation into Supreme Court corruption and hold Leo and Crow accountable.

Add your name: Issue subpoenas for Leonard Leo and Harlan Crow!

Sources:

1. ProPublica, “Senate Judiciary Committee Has Yet to Subpoena Harlan Crow or Leonard Leo,” February 16, 2024.
2. CNN, “Senate Democrats back down on Supreme Court ethics subpoenas after GOP threats,” November 9, 2023.
3. ProPublica, “We Don’t Talk About Leonard: The Man Behind the Right’s Supreme Court Supermajority,” October 11, 2023.
4. ProPublica, “Clarence Thomas and the Billionaire,” April 6, 2023.