Justice Clarence Thomas intends to amend his financial disclosure forms to reflect a 2014 real estate deal he made with a GOP megadonor – an acknowledgment that the transaction should have been disclosed almost a decade ago, a source close to Thomas tells CNN.
The deal between Thomas and Harlan Crow, a Dallas real estate magnate and long-time friend of Thomas, involves the sale of three Georgia properties, including the home where Thomas’ mother, Leola Williams, 94, currently lives.
The source said Thomas has always filled out his forms with the help of aides, and that it was an oversight not to report the real estate transaction. Thomas believed he didn’t have to disclose because he lost money on the deal, according to the source.
Thomas will review the forms and amend as appropriate, the source said.
The real estate deal was first reported by ProPublica, a nonprofit news organization that has been investigating ties between Thomas and Crow. According to ProPublica, Crow has given more than $10 million in publicly disclosed political contributions and supported efforts to move the judiciary to the right.
Thomas also has come under fire for not reporting luxury travel that he and his wife, Ginni Thomas, took with the Crows, including trips on the donor’s yacht and private jet. The justice defended the decision not to disclose, saying in a rare statement that he was advised at the time that he did not have to report it.
The latest revelations about Thomas’ ties with Crow come as critics say Supreme Court justices should be more transparent about their lives off the bench. In addition, critics and members of Congress have repeatedly asked the court to adopt a formal ethics code, something it has declined to do.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island and Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia have led about two dozen Democratic…
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