“The View” co-host Sunny Hostin complained about Republicans condemning racial attacks against Supreme Court Associate Justice Clarence Thomas during the show’s Friday panel.
The co-hosts pondered on potential legal consequences for Thomas and the legitimacy of the Supreme Court following reports that he accepted luxurious vacations from a conservative mega-donor. Republicans have responded with evidence of left-wing racial attacks against Thomas, which the co-hosts tried to dispute.
“They [Republicans] use the black card more than I do,” Hostin said. “It’s just not true and I think the worst part of the fact that they’re using the black card in that way is that it lessens the real degradation that happens to African Americans in this country. So I think that’s just smoke and mirrors.”
Co-host Ana Navarro also addressed Republicans defending Thomas, an African American.
“It’s nice to see Republicans for a change defending a black man,” Navarro said. “The problem with Clarence Thomas is not that he’s a black man, it’s that he’s got a sugar daddy and he’s on the Supreme Court.” (RELATED: Sunny Hostin Says Being A ‘Black Republican’ Is An ‘Oxymoron’)
Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin however, added that other Supreme Court justices have also failed to disclose financial details. These include Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who did not report her trips paid for by outside groups. She and Justice Neil Gorsuch did not recuse themselves from cases involving Penguin Random House, even though both justices received money from book deals with the publisher. Justice Elena Kagan also did not recuse herself from a case revolving around Harvard Law School, even though she once served as the school’s dean.
Farah Griffin then called for outside entity to ensure that justices self-report and abide by proper ethics.
Thomas said he had been received “guidance” from colleagues and others on the judiciary and that “this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable.”
“I have endeavoured to follow that counsel throughout my tenure, and have always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines,” Thomas said in a statement.
Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz cited racial attacks against Thomas at a May 2 hearing. He pointed to magazine caricatures that labeled Thomas as “Uncle Thomas: Lawn Jockey for The Far Right.” Another depicted him shining the late Justice Antony Scalia’s shoes. Democrat Georgia State Senator Emanuel Jones called the justice an “Uncle Tom.”