“‘There is no excuse for it. Thomas could invite them to his Christmas party and he could attend Christmas parties, as long as they are not discussing any cases. His Christmas party should not be paid for by lawyers,’ Painter said. ‘A federal government employee collecting money from lawyers for any reason … I don’t see how that works.’” #Corruption #ClarenceThomasProblem

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/12/clarence-thomas-aide-venmo-payments-lawyers-supreme-court

Lawyers with supreme court business paid Clarence Thomas aide via Venmo

Payments to Rajan Vasisht, an aide from 2019-21, underscore ties between the justice and lawyers who argue cases in front of him

The Guardian
@MarkRuffalo Even if we were so naive as to take this at “face value” as Clarence Thomas’s Christmas Party, just the idea of a Supreme Court justice requiring someone to pay for the privilege of attending his Christmas party implies a level of grift beyond belief.
@zemsgram @MarkRuffalo What kind of creepy weirdo charges admission for their holiday party? The guest list should be people you like and people you think will like each other.