Back in 2010, Kashmir Hill and I floated the idea, in a piece for the Washington Post, of Justice Clarence Thomas running for president in 2012. In light of the total clusterf**k never-ending slog that the Republican presidential primary process has become, the idea of a Thomas candidacy has been revived.
Writing in The Daily Beast, Professor Adam Winkler suggested that Justice Thomas could emerge as the Republican presidential nominee after a brokered convention. As a candidate, Clarence Thomas might be able to bridge the ever-widening gap between the Republican Establishment, which esteems him as a jurist, and the Tea Party types, with whom his wife, Ginni Thomas, has worked.
What does Justice Thomas think about making a White House run? He recently responded to the speculation….
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The exchange took place during Justice Thomas’s recent appearance at Wake Forest Law. Check it out, around the 40:00 mark:
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Ouch. So much for that idea!
For those of you who can’t watch video, here is what Justice Thomas had to say:
Oh yeah, well, right! [Laughter.] I don’t like politics. I mean, why would I do that? Oh, God no. I mean, I have as much interest in that as I have in jumping in boiling oil.
There’s lots of other interesting stuff in the clip. For example, right before he rejects the idea of running for president, Justice Thomas discusses his approach to clerkship hiring — and notes how he often likes to hire clerks who graduated from non-Ivy schools.
P.S. Thanks to Howard Bashman and Mike Sacks for bringing the talk to my attention.
A Conversation With Justice Clarence Thomas [YouTube via How Appealing]