Results for: Clarence Thomas

Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas authored the majority opinion in a 7-2 decision to uphold funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The ruling surprised some as Thomas split from conservative colleagues. Banking industry parties challenged the CFPB’s funding mechanism as unconstitutional, but Thomas argued that it complies with the Appropriations Clause, allowing the bureau to draw funds directly from the Federal Reserve System. Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch strongly dissented, saying the ruling gives the CFPB excessive autonomy from congressional control. The decision highlights the distinctive views among conservative justices and underscores Thomas’ reputation as an independent thinker who interprets constitutional provisions based on their original meaning and intent.

This week, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito drew criticism from liberal media pundits over reports that he flew the American flag upside down following the January 6, 2021 riot at the United States Capitol Building. Justice Clarence Thomas, in a concurring opinion attached to the Court’s decision upholding a GOP-drawn redistricting map in South Carolina, took aim at the Supreme Court’s landmark 1954 ruling in Brown v. Board of Education, calling it an ‘extravagant’
[use] of judicial power.’

Former Obama adviser Dan Pfeiffer has warned that the U.S. Supreme Court could be left with a “MAGA majority” should former President Trump win re-election in November. Pfeiffer predicted that if Trump wins re-election, he would “most certainly” be able to appoint two Supreme Court justices since Justice Clarence Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito are nearing retirement. This would give Trump the power to appoint five Justices to the Supreme Court, all of whom would be relatively young and could serve for decades to come.