WASHINGTON (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas failed to publicly disclose additional travel on GOP megadonor Harlan Crow’s private jet, a top Democratic senator who is backing an election-year push to tighten the high court’s ethics rules said Monday. Thomas and his wife, Virginia, took a round-trip flight between Hawaii and New Zealand in November 2010, according to international flight records maintained by Customs and Border Protection, Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.
, wrote. The letter to Crow’s lawyer is part of an inquiry that Wyden, the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, opened after several reports that Thomas had for years received undisclosed luxury travel from Crow. Wyden’s letter demands additional information about private jet and superyacht trips.
“I am deeply concerned that Mr. Crow may have been showering a public official with extravagant gifts, then writing off those gifts to lower his tax bill,” he wrote. The letter was first reported by The New York Times.
A spokesman for Crow said he has always followed tax law and Wyden’s inquiries have “no legal basis.” “It’s concerning that Senator Wyden is abusing his committee’s powers as part of a politically motivated campaign against the Supreme Court,” said spokesman Michael Zona in a statement. The Senate Judiciary Committee previously uncovered at least three additional trips in its own investigation, including to Indonesia and California.
Democrats, including President Joe B.