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Is Justice Thomas in for a #MeToo Charge?

By George Khoury, Esq. | Last updated on

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas is facing renewed controversy related to Anita Hill and the other women he allegedly harassed while holding a position of authority. A recent news story highlighted the fact that new-ish evidence surfaced which, if believed, would mean that Justice Thomas lied during his confirmation hearings (which is actually an impeachable offense, even for a SCOTUS justice).

However, even if Justice Thomas is found guilty in the court of public opinion, it is not very likely that he would be impeached any time soon given the strong partisan politics currently at play. Also, given how easy it is for justices to escape prosecution by stepping down, he'd likely be able to dodge impeachment via retirement.

What New Evidence?

The new evidence being reported actually isn't that new, both in when it was discovered and in when it happened. The evidence concerns an incident in 1999, and it was actually published in October 2016. But it was just dwarfed by more disturbing and shocking news, including President's Trump's undeniably uncouth comment to Billy Bush, as well as FBI Director Comey's announcement that the Clinton email probe was being reopened.

However, the news of the new-ish evidence against Justice Thomas has not just gone away with the news cycles. And now, with Chief Justice Robert's special committee, and with the #MeToo movement gaining steam and dethroning once mighty men, this new evidence could really turn the pressure and scrutiny up on Justice Thomas.

#MeToo

In addition to the 1999 incident, other women allegedly experienced Justice Thomas's unwanted advances. Allegedly the jurist is both grabby and has a habit of discussing inappropriate matters with his female colleagues, such as pornography, sex, and breast size. In 1991, Anita Hill was not the only woman that could have testified, but the others were allegedly pressured not to speak out.

Justice Thomas's ex-girlfriend even confirmed that he had a "penchant for porn and behaved inappropriately with women at work." It will be interesting to see if the #MeToo campaign results in more accusers coming forward against the SCOTUS jurist, and if so, what the end result will be. Though #MeToo supporters might want to carefully consider whether now is the best time to have SCOTUS justice (even a conservative one) impeached.

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