Clarence Thomas facing pressure from lawmakers following revelations regarding wife's texts

After it was unveiled that Virginia "Ginni" Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, had repeatedly called on former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows to try and overturn results of the 2020 elections, multiple lawmakers have called on the justice himself to take action.

For starters, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) on Friday said Thomas should now recuse himself from cases regarding the Jan. 6 Capitol riot as well as the 2024 election should former President Donald Trump decide to run, Axios reports.

"Judges are obligated to recuse themselves when their participation in a case would create even the appearance of a conflict of interest," Wyden wrote in a statement. "A person with an ounce of commonsense could see that bar is met here."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

"In light of new reporting from numerous outlets, Justice Thomas' conduct on the Supreme Court looks increasingly corrupt," he added.

And Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) on Friday also suggested Thomas perhaps consider "voluntarily appearing" before the committee investigating the Capitol riot to answer any questions about his wife's text messages, CBS News reports. Ginni Thomas should cooperate as well, Blumenthal said.

Thomas' wife earlier this month also acknowledged attending the "Stop the Steal" rally that preceded the Capitol attack.

As for Republican lawmakers' opinions, well, in one example, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) believes Justice Thomas should be able to decide for himself whether recusal is necessary.

"Justice Thomas can make his decisions as he's made them every other time," McCarthy said Friday, per Axios. "Justice Thomas can make his decisions as he's made them every other time."