Send this to your friends, whether you agree or not to the Health Plan. This
decision could be called as unethical otherwise. Either way this would be
important.
Linda Herd
----- Forwarded Message ----
From: "Becky Bond, CREDO Action" <a...@credoaction.com>
To: Linda Marie Herd <linda.h...@sbcglobal.net>
Sent: Thu, February 10, 2011 10:29:59 AM
Subject: Clarence Thomas.
Tell Clarence Thomas: Recuse yourself
A supreme ethical conflict
To protect the honor of the highest court in the land, Thomas must recuse
himself from deliberations on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act.
Clicking here will add your name to the letter to Justice Thomas.
Dear Linda,
A case challenging the constitutionality of the health care reform bill passed
by Congress is headed to the Supreme Court, and Justice Clarence Thomas has a
supreme ethical conflict.
It's been widely reported that the Thomas family has financial ties to the
conservative organizations leading the campaign to bring down our new health
care law — the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Rep. Anthony Weiner and 73 other members of Congress have signed a letter
detailing the appearance of ethical conflict and asking Justice Thomas to
recuse
himself from deliberations on the constitutionality of health care reform.
We're asking you to sign a companion letter that Rep. Weiner — a champion of
progressive issues — will deliver to the Supreme Court along with the letter
signed by members of Congress.
Tell Justice Clarence Thomas: Recuse yourself from deliberations on the
constitutionality of health care reform. Click here to automatically sign the
letter below.
The letter to Justice Thomas reads:
As an Associate Justice, you are entrusted with the responsibility to exercise
the highest degree of discretion and impartiality when deciding a case. We join
Rep. Anthony Weiner and other members of Congress in writing to note our
surprise at recent revelations of your financial ties to leading organizations
dedicated to lobbying against the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
We
write today to respectfully ask that you maintain the integrity of this court
and recuse yourself from any deliberations on the constitutionality of this act.
>
>The appearance of a conflict of interest merits recusal under federal law.
>From
>what we have already seen, the line between your impartiality and you and your
>wife's financial stake in the overturn of health care reform is blurred. Your
>spouse is advertising herself as a lobbyist who has "experience and
>connections"
>and appeals to clients who want a particular decision — they want to overturn
>health care reform. Moreover, your failure to disclose Ginni Thomas's receipt
>of
>$686,589 from the Heritage Foundation, a prominent opponent of health care
>reform, between 2003 and 2007 has raised great concern.
>
>This is not the first case where your impartiality was in question. As Common
>Cause points out, you "participated in secretive political strategy sessions,
>perhaps while the case was pending, with corporate leaders whose political
>aims
>were advanced by the [5-4] decision" on the Citizens United case. Your spouse
>also received an undisclosed salary paid for by undisclosed donors as CEO of
>Liberty Central, a 501(c)(4) organization that stood to benefit from the
>decision and played an active role in the 2010 elections.
>
>Given these facts, there is a strong conflict between the Thomas household's
>financial gain through your spouse's activities and your role as an Associate
>Justice of the United States Supreme Court. We urge you to recuse yourself
>from
>this case. If the US Supreme Court's decision is to be viewed as legitimate by
>the American people, this is the only correct path.
>
>We appreciate your thoughtful consideration of this request.
Click here to automatically sign your name to our letter to Justice Thomas that
will be delivered to the Supreme Court by progressive champion Rep. Anthony
Weiner.
Thomas failed to disclose that his wife Ginni Thomas received a total of
$686,589 in compensation from the Heritage Foundation.1 Furthermore his wife is
currently advertising herself as a lobbyist who has "experience and
connections"
to conservative groups who have an explicit agenda to overturn health care
reform — by repeal in the Congress or overturning the law in the courts.2
Justice Thomas is no stranger to questions of ethics. Along with Justice
Antonin
Scalia he attended meetings organized by the secretive, Tea Party-funding
billionaire Koch brothers. The Koch brothers have been key players in rewriting
the political landscape after the Citizens United Supreme Court decision
unleashed the floodgates of corporate money in federal politics.3 And Thomas'
wife has received an undisclosed salary paid for by undisclosed donors as CEO
of
Liberty Central, a 501(c)(4) organization that was formed to take advantage of
Citizens United rules and to play an active role in the 2010 elections.
Unlike other members of the federal judiciary, Supreme Court Justices have no
specific code of ethics to which they may be held accountable. But there is a
clear appearance of a conflict of interest between his wife's clear financial
stake in overturning the health care law and Justice Thomas' personal duty to
exhibit the highest degree of discretion and impartiality. To protect the honor
of the highest court in the land, Thomas must recuse himself from deliberations
on the constitutionality of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
Tell Justice Clarence Thomas: Recuse yourself from deliberations on the
constitutionality of health care reform. Clicking here will automatically sign
your name to the above letter.
Sincerely,
Becky Bond, Political Director
CREDO Action from Working Assets
Notes:
1"What else haven't they told us?" Common Cause, Jan. 21, 2011.
2"Adventures of Ginni Thomas," Ben Smith, Politico, Feb. 4, 2011.
3"Justices Scalia And Thomas's Attendance At Koch Event Sparks Judicial Ethics
Debate," Sam Stein, Huffington Post, Oct. 20, 2010.
________________________________
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