Stephen Colbert, Seth Meyers, and Bill Maher explain why Ginni Thomas' texts are such 'a massive scandal'
"The Jan. 6 select committee continues to do their work, and today they got some good news" when "a federal judge ruled that the former president 'more likely than not' committed a crime in trying to block the confirmation of [President] Biden's win," Stephen Colbert said on Monday's Late Show. "I believe he sided the legal precedent of No S--t v. Sherlock. The bombshell is part of the ongoing investigation into disgraced lawyer John Eastman," who's been claiming attorney-client privilege to shield records and emails from the Jan. 6 committee, "but that doesn't apply to lawyers who help their clients commit a crime, and in this case, the judge found that 'the illegality of the plan was obvious.'"
"Another person in the Jan. 6 committee crosshairs, interested in talking to, is wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas," Ginni Thomas, a prominent conservative activist and "extreme election fraud truther" who texted Mark Meadows repeatedly after the election, urging him to push to overturn the results, Colbert said. "That is huge. The wife of a sitting Supreme Court justice conspired with the president's chief of staff to throw out the results of a free and fair election — and she never even invented a pillow." He showcased some of her texts.
"'It takes time for the army who is gathering for his back' — that is very Shakespearean for someone named Ginni," Seth Meyers said on Late Night. "And let's not forget the reason this is so shocking is [Donald] Trump was open about his desire to have the Supreme Court help him stay in power." In one case, "Trump sued to block the National Archives from releasing any records related to Jan. 6, and the only justice to side with Trump in that 8-1 ruling was Clarence Thomas," he said. "He sided with Trump in a case to block the release of records that could have potentially implicated his own wife. That is a slap in the face to the Constitution — and even if it was to protect your wife, slapping is never okay. So it's a massive scandal, although I get it — if I was saying crazy s--t like that, my wife would want those texts blocked, too."
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Ginni Thomas was also "at the Jan. 6 riot, she participated in what was basically urging on a coup," Bill Maher said on last Friday's Real Time. And her texts urging Meadows to overturn the election are "based on crazy QAnon theories," including texting the president's chief of staff to "Release the Kraken," he noted. "I think she's smoking the kraken."
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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
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