Weekend Comments/Culture of Corruption.

September 23, 2023

[No audio in this newsletter due to travel.]

          The purpose of this short note is to open the Comments section over the weekend for paying subscribers. As always, please be respectful and “like” worthy comments to promote them to the attention of other readers.

          As we head into the weekend, two stories about corruption at the Supreme Court and in the US Senate dominate the news.

          Pro Publica has continued its superb investigative journalism regarding corruption at the US Supreme Court. The article is here: Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events — ProPublica.

          I urge you to read the article. It reveals previously secret trips by Justice Thomas to “donor dinners” hosted by the Koch brothers political arm. Thomas flew to those events on a private jet and stayed at a luxury hotel during the events. But Thomas failed to list those flights or events on his tardy “amended” disclosure forms he was forced to file in response to prior Pro Publica investigations.

          At the very least, the article highlights the fact that Thomas makes required disclosures only after he has been caught in omissions by watchdog groups. At worst, the article reveals a decades-long pattern of Thomas being used as a lure for major donors to participate in the Koch brothers’ dark-money fundraising. These “donor dinners” were not “family vacations” with “dear friends” as Thomas has described other events that he failed to disclose. They are political activities designed to raise tens of millions of dollars. And a dinner with Clarence Thomas was the reward for those who donated the most.

          The article also explains how the corruption of Thomas by Harlan Crow and the Koch brothers is directly tied to the reactionary plan to “destroy the administrative state”—an effort that is on the Court’s docket this term. Justice Thomas should recuse himself from consideration of that case because he has been a foot soldier in the effort of reactionary groups to overturn the “Chevron Doctrine.” The Pro Publica article will provide helpful background for discussion on this topic in future newsletters.

          Finally, the article reveals that members of the Court have participated in annual meetings of an exclusive, secretive club in Northern California that is open only to males. Thomas has been a regular attendee of the Bohemian Club gatherings. Justice Scalia also attended meetings of the club. (Other justices attended as guests of family members who belong to the club.)

          The corruption of the Supreme Court has occurred largely on Chief Justice Roberts’s watch. The latest revelations about Justice Thomas’s failure to disclose flights on private jets and vacations at exclusive resorts should result in a public referral of Thomas’s conduct to the Department of Justice for investigation. Instead, Justice Roberts will refer the matter to the Court’s “dead letter office,” where it will languish in perpetuity.

          The solution is simple and obvious: Expand the Court to dilute the death grip of the reactionary majority and impose an enforceable code of conduct by denying the Court appellate jurisdiction until it agrees to abide by the same standards that apply to every other federal judge in the United States.

          As to the indictment of Democratic Senator Robert Menendez, the solution is simple and obvious. He should resign. He is entitled to a presumption of innocence before a judge or jury in a criminal trial. But a grand jury has found probable cause to indict him for conspiracy to commit bribery and fraud. He should defend himself as a private citizen, not as a member of the Senate.

          Double standard? Sure. But if we want to preserve the rule of law and promote democratic norms, we can’t make an exception for Democrats.

Reader Comment of the Day.

Reader Barbara K posted the following in the Comments section on Friday:

"One of the best things you can do in the next 6 weeks is to encourage voter turnout in the upcoming VA state legislative races, where the fate of abortion access is on the line. Here's a list of upcoming phonebanks sponsored by Sister District Project which include all the training and support you need to get started."  

Reader meeting in San Francisco.

          Good news! Although the first reader meeting in San Francisco has reached capacity, another reader has kindly offered his home for a second meeting on Friday, October 6 at 10:00 AM in the Pacific Heights area of San Francisco. There are still openings available for the second meeting. Sign up here: Today's Edition Reader Meeting in San Francisco.

Concluding Thoughts.

          If you can, relax and recharge this weekend. Next week will bring more chaos in the House, courtesy of the dysfunctional GOP federation of roving gangs. Even if they can muster the unity to pass spending bills or a continuing resolution, those bills will be made-for-TV exercises in fantasy. It will be disgusting and painful to watch, but the drama is another sign of the death spiral of the Republican Party as a national political force.

          Talk to you tomorrow!