House Democrat refers to Thomas as ‘Justice “Harlan Crow”‘

Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) referred to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas as “Justice ‘Harlan Crow’ Thomas” on Thursday, as he called for the expansion of the court in the wake of its decision restricting the use of affirmative action in college admissions.

Thomas has faced public scrutiny in recent months over his close relationship with Crow, a Republican megadonor.

“Justice ‘Harlan Crow’ Thomas and five other MAGAs have just slammed the college doors on Black and Brown folks after declaring that we now live in a color-blind country,” Johnson said in a statement. 

Crow funded several luxury vacations for the Supreme Court justice, paid for his great-nephew’s private school tuition and purchased properties owned by Thomas and his family, according to reporting by ProPublica.

On Thursday, the six conservative justices on the Supreme Court ruled that Harvard University’s and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s use of race in their admissions processes violate the 14th Amendment.

“This judicial activism must be met with passage of my legislation to expand [the Supreme Court],” Johnson said. “This decision can lead to the demise of [Historically Black Colleges and Universities]. We cannot let that happen. Supreme Court Reform Now!”

The Georgia Democrat reintroduced legislation in May to add four seats on the court, which would expand the bench from its current nine justices to 13.