Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.) on Sunday said he believed Justice Clarence Thomas would “always do the right thing” in response to reports of text messages that Ginni Thomas, Clarence Thomas’s wife, sent to former President Trump’s chief of staff Mark Meadows in support of overturning the 2020 presidential election.
“Fox News Sunday” host John Roberts asked Scott for his thoughts on the controversy, noting that there have been calls for the justice to recuse himself from future cases involving the Jan. 6 Capitol attack.
“Well first off, I admire and respect Clarence Thomas. I think he’s been a great Supreme Court justice,” Scott said. “And Clarence Thomas, in my opinion, will always do the right thing. So I’ve not seen … I’ve watched Clarence Thomas for years that I’ve never— always seen him do the right thing.”
Roberts noted that Supreme Court justices are not bound by the same code of ethics that other federal judges are and asked Scott if he would support legislation to change that. Last year, Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) introduced legislation to impose a code of ethics onto the Supreme Court.
“I haven’t seen the legislation, but you know — I tell you what my experience with the Supreme Court is they’re trying their best to interpret the laws, do the best they can. I don’t agree with everything they do. None of us would, but I think they’re trying to do the best they can,” said Scott.
Fellow Republican congressional lawmakers have defended Clarence Thomas in the wake of the controversy. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) both voiced their support for Thomas last week.
In a statement, McConnell said, “Justice Thomas is a great American and an outstanding Justice. I have total confidence in his brilliance and impartiality in every aspect of the work of the Court.”
McCarthy said at a press conference that he does not believe that Thomas should recuse himself from cases having to do with the Jan. 6 attack.