Comic and speak present host John Oliver is becoming a member of a rising name for Supreme Court docket Justice Clarence Thomas to step down from his publish on the nation’s highest courtroom in playful vogue.
On the season 11 premiere of HBO’s “Final Week Tonight,” Oliver mentioned the U.S. Supreme Court docket is reaching a “breaking level,” in line with Deadline, and cited points with ethics codes’ enforcement, lifetime appointments, and the restricted variety of justices, which might all be “fastened.”
He took time to name out Clarence Thomas and amplify the information protection revealing the extent of lavish presents and journeys Thomas had acquired from rich pals and benefactors throughout his years seated on the federal bench.
“Clarence Thomas is arguably essentially the most consequential justice on the courtroom proper now and he’s by no means actually appeared to love the job,” Oliver mentioned on the present. “He mentioned, ‘It’s not price doing for the grief.’ So what if he can preserve the luxurious perks he clearly enjoys with out having to endure all of that grief.”
That’s when Oliver makes a comical, but pointed try at providing Thomas a present: $1 million a yr for the rest of Thomas’ life on the situation that Thomas give up the courtroom.
Oliver even offered a contract to indicate he was severe.
“Should you watch our present, you understand jokes aren’t actually our factor. That is actual,” Oliver mentioned whereas holding up the contract. “1,000,000 {dollars} a yr till you or I die. This provide isn’t without end. You could have precisely 30 days from midnight tonight to make your resignation efficient.”
To win Thomas over, Oliver additionally mentioned he would throw in a brand-new, top-of-the-line luxurious leisure car that reportedly prices $2.4 million and features a full bed room with a king-size mattress, one and a half bogs, a hearth, 4 televisions, a washer/dryer, and a residential-size fridge.
Providing Thomas an RV was a pointy jab at a $267,000 leisure car that was already gifted to Thomas by the justice’s longtime pal and well being care magnate Anthony Wellers. A ProPublica report revealed that was simply one of many dozens of luxurious presents Thomas acquired from conservative and ultrawealthy megadonors that he by no means formally disclosed. A Senate committee report revealed that Wellers forgave a lot of the mortgage funds Thomas was speculated to make on the RV, one thing Thomas’ legal professional denied.
“In order that’s the provide. 1,000,000 {dollars} a yr and a model new apartment on wheels and all it’s a must to do in return is signal the contract and get the f*** off the Supreme Court docket,” Oliver acknowledged.
Oliver makes use of his publish on his weekly information satire program to highlight urgent social, cultural, and systemic points within the U.S. that always go unnoticed or are underreported.
The ProPublica report that uncovered the quite a few presents to Thomas revived requires him to step down because of the moral questions they raised coupled with the dearth of disclosure on Thomas’s half.
U.S. Home lawmakers Ted Lieu (D-Ca.), Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), Invoice Pascrell (D-N.J), Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), and Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) all referred to as for his resignation in October 2023.
