December 20th 2023.
A recent report from ProPublica has revealed that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas may have been considering resigning because of his salary. The conversation in question happened after Thomas' time as a speaker at a conservative convention in January 2000.
At the time, Thomas’ salary was $173,600, which would be over $300,000 in today's money. However, he was one of the least wealthy members of the court, and wanted more money. It was on the flight home from the convention that he had a discussion with Florida Rep. Cliff Stearns, pressing the issue of a pay raise. During the conversation, Thomas reportedly said, “Congress should give Supreme Court justices a pay raise. If lawmakers didn’t act, one or more justices will leave soon — maybe in the next year.”
Thomas' salary troubles were due to his increasing financial troubles and debt. Despite his repeated attempts to lift the ban on justices giving paid speeches, the ban was never lifted. This, in turn, left Thomas to receive high-end gifts from friends, such as GOP donor Harlan Crow and conservative financier David Sokol.
Public records show that Thomas was already in a state of financial strain even before his appointment as a Supreme Court Justice in 1991. During the first 10 years of his tenure, he and his wife Ginni would regularly borrow money, including a $100,000 credit line on their house and a consumer loan of up to $50,000.
It has been speculated that Thomas purchased a Corvette and a house in Virginia in the early 90s for approximately $522,000, just one year after his appointment. The couple allegedly borrowed all of the funds used to buy the house except for $8,000, less than two percent of the asking price.
Then, after gaining full guardianship of his 6-year-old grandnephew in 1998, the Thomases sent him to expensive private schools.
Rep. Stearns didn't let the conversation end there. His office worked with lobbying firms in an attempt to get a judicial pay raise, according to Business Insider. When asked about the conversation in a recent interview, Stearns said, “His importance as a conservative was paramount. We wanted to make sure he felt comfortable in his job, and he was being paid properly.”
Unfortunately, not much has changed in salary range and disposable income for justices. To supplement their income, the best option is usually to publish a book or teach classes at law school for a fee. While Associate Justices are now making $285,400, that's still a far cry from the $174,000 made in 2009.
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