Crockett calls Thomas ‘corrupt’ after Supreme Court ruling to overturn bump stock ban

Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-Texas) called Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas “corrupt” during an interview with MSNBC about the court’s recent decision to overturn the Trump-era bump stock ban. Thomas has been the target of increasing scrutiny over gifts he received from Republican super-donors, including billionaire Harlan Crow.

“You guys were really cool before,” Crockett said during an interview with Melissa Murray. “Clarence Thomas is corrupt. History end. No one receives that much money and is not influenced in any way.”

“There will definitely be a reckoning on November 5,” she added.

Earlier this week, Senate Judiciary Chairman Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) released information showing that Thomas failed to disclose information about three trips he took that were funded by Crow. The report noted that Thomas received nearly $4.2 million, which far exceeds the gifts received by any other judge.

Thomas rejected the allegations, with Elliot S. Berke, Thomas’ attorney, saying the information disclosed by Crow fell under the “personal hospitality exemption.” Therefore, Thomas did not need to disclose the trips, he argued.

According to data compiled by Fix the Court, since 2004, Thomas has accepted $4 million, or 193 gifts. The group reported that Thomas likely accepted an additional 126 gifts, but could not confirm whether this was true. Of the nearly 200 present, Thomas reported only 27.

Democrats have repeatedly criticized Thomas and Justice Samuel Alito for being biased in their judicial decisions. In recent weeks, Alito has come under fire for reports about flags flying at his homes, including an upside-down American flag over his Alexandria, Virginia, residence.

Alito and Thomas played crucial roles in repealing the bump stock ban on Friday.

The court handed down a 6-3 ruling that overturned the Trump-era bump stock ban, implemented in the wake of the 2017 Las Vegas mass shooting, which was the deadliest in U.S. history, killing 60 people and injuring hundreds. of others.

The Trump and Biden administrations implemented the ban by having the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms classify semiautomatic weapons with buttstocks as machine guns, which are prohibited under federal law.

Thomas he wrote Friday’s ruling, saying the federal government had stretched the law too far.

“We concluded that [a] semi-automatic rifle equipped with a buttstock is not a ‘machine gun’ because it does not fire more than one shot ‘by a single trigger function,’” Thomas wrote, citing the legal definition.

Alito added in agreement that he believed the rule was invalid and said Congress could change the law if it decided to ban it.

“There is a simple remedy for the unequal treatment of bump stocks and machine guns,” he wrote. “Congress can change the law – and perhaps would have already done so if the ATF had maintained its previous interpretation. Now that the situation is clear, Congress can act.”

However, Crockett was not convinced by Alito’s opinion, saying, “I’m sure Alito would find a reason why this law is unconstitutional in some way.”

“All these gun manufacturers would win again,” she added.

Crockett’s comments come amid an ongoing Democratic effort to pass a Supreme Court ethics package. This week, Democrats tried to pass the bill through unanimous consent, but Republicans blocked it.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story