New York Democratic Rep. Hakeem Jeffries tried to defend Democrats who smear Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas during a Wednesday hearing but was quickly shut down during a heated exchange.

Members of the House Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet heard testimony about Supreme Court ethics as leftists take aim at Thomas’ wife, Virginia, and whether Thomas should recuse himself from certain cases.

Democratic Mississippi Rep. Bennie Thompson said during an opening statement he is “alarmed… about unanswered questions about Justice Thomas’ failure to recuse from a decision that we now know might have implicated the actions of his wife and her apparent efforts to overturn the 2020 election.”

Partner at Schaerr Jaffe LLP, Mark Paoletta, testified that left hates Thomas because he’s a black conservative but doesn’t conform to the left’s idea of how a black man should think.

“What evidence do you have to support that incendiary charge?” Jeffries asked.

“When Chairman Bennie Thompson (D-MS) calls him an ‘Uncle Tom’ because of his views on voter ID and affirmative action, when in fact more black Americans support voter ID, and with respect to affirmative action and college education, 62% opposed to it. So that is the most vile, disgusting thing you can say and so yes, that’s the evidence,” Paoletta responded.

Rep. Jeffries: “What evidence do you have to support” that Dems hate Clarence Thomas because he’s a black conservative?

“The Chairman of this committee called him an Uncle Tom.”

Rep. Jeffries: “He has freedom of speech.”

“Can I give you another example.”

Rep. Jeffries: “No.” pic.twitter.com/HTaMxr8oGK

— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) April 28, 2022

Thompson called Thomas an “Uncle Tom” in 2014. (RELATED: WaPo Stealth Edits Article Comparing Justice Thomas To A ‘White Conservative’)

“Reclaiming my time, there are a lot of vile and disgusting things-” Jeffries intervened.

“You just asked me for an example,” Paoletta shot back.

“The notion that that answer is, and some members on this side of the aisle and others have been called the N-word throughout different points in our lives, but lies the point you have a particular bias, and its an overstatement which is not surprising when you look at the balance of your testimony. And if Chairman Bennie Thompson has an observation to make, he’s entitled to free speech.”

“Can I give you another example?” Paoletta asked.

“No,” Jeffries said.

Democrats want Thomas to recuse himself after texts emerged showing his wife sent messages to White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in the days after the 2020 election which said “do not concede” and claimed Democrats were attempting a “heist” of the presidential election.