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Clarence Thomas Has Been Actively Lobbying For Neomi Rao, Which Would Bother People If We Were Still Bothered By Things

I guess we already know how Thomas would rule on any Rao opinions appealed to him. That's... not how this is supposed to work.

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After a party-line vote, Neomi Rao’s nomination to replace Brett Kavanaugh on the D.C. Circuit is moving forward to a full Senate vote. Living in a world where dwarf-tossing isn’t a deal breaker will never feel right to me.

Rao’s nomination almost did get held up, however. By Republicans. Not because she favors a world where little people are tossed but gays don’t have equal rights. No, that’s what Republicans like about her. But there was some concern among Republicans that she was insufficiently antagonistic to Roe v. Wade.

To assuage those concerns, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took to the phones to call senators in support of Rao’s nomination. From the Washington Post:

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is working behind the scenes to boost the prospects of Neomi Rao, one of his former law clerks, to serve on a powerful federal appeals court in Washington — speaking privately with at least two Republican senators as she faces a contentious confirmation fight.

Sen. Josh Hawley (Mo.) who publicly questioned how Rao would rule on issues such as abortion before supporting her in a key vote Thursday, disclosed this week that he had called Thomas. The justice has also phoned Sen. Tim Scott (S.C.), a sometimes deciding voice on controversial nominees.

“He called me and wanted just to share with me his positive experience and how smart she was,” Scott said in an interview Thursday, recalling the conversation he had with Thomas a couple of weeks ago.

That’s not right. It’s not right for a Supreme Court justice to lobby the political branch of government for one of their friends. This is not writing a rec letter so a former clerk can get a job, this is advocating on behalf of a person whose decision you are supposed to overrule if they are wrong.

We know that justices occasionally call out on behalf of Supreme Court nominees, but that is a little different. Supreme Court nominees are applying to be colleagues of current Supreme Court justices. It’s not as risible for a justice to call up a senator and say, “I know this person and I think he/she would do a find job.” Here, Thomas has put himself in a position that, if he had any ethical center, he would need to recuse himself from opinions written by Rao that are appealed to his court. The fact that we know he won’t do that makes the optics of his even worse.

And while we’re here, while we’re talking about whether it’s appropriate for Supreme Court justices to lobby the Senate on behalf of nominees: WHO STUMPED FOR MERRICK GARLAND? Which Supreme Court justices called Mitch McConnell and DEMANDED that Merrick Garland be given a hearing for elevation to the highest court? Thomas? Do you stand up for the integrity of the Supreme Court, or do you only open your mouth when you think it will help your friends?

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Thomas probably wants Rao to replace him someday. Maybe he’ll make another corrupt, Anthony Kennedy-style “deal” with Donald Trump, after the 2020 term if Trump’s prospects look dim. He’ll retire if Trump promises to nominate Rao. We know that the Republican party has abandoned any semblance of moral or ethical principles.

Justice Thomas working behind the scenes to boost Trump’s court nominee [Washington Post]

Elie Mystal is the Executive Editor of Above the Law and the Legal Editor for More Perfect. He can be reached @ElieNYC on Twitter, or at elie@abovethelaw.com. He will resist.

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