Virtual hearings have launched Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas into the spotlight propelling fans to ask if he could be as popular as his colleague, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
During his past 28 years on the bench, Thomas has remained pretty quiet, rarely speaking. But with coronavirus changing hearings to take place via conference call or virtual broadcast, Thomas is speaking up and his conservative views are being heard.
The New York Times reports the longest-serving member of the Supreme Court is enjoying his moment in the spotlight during the Trump era.
Thomas was the subject of a recent book, “The Enigma of Clarence Thomas.” He also is the focus of a biographical documentary set to air Monday on PBS. Conservative filmmaker Michael Pack is behind the film.
The book and film show that Thomas is catching up in popularity to Ginsburg, who has a book and documentary about her life.
“He would have never said, ‘Gee whiz, I should be an icon,’” Helgi Walker, a lawyer, who clerked for Justice Thomas in 1995 and 1996, told the newspaper. “But life is long, and it’s amazing how things can turn out sometimes.”
Just as Ginsberg has become a symbol for liberals, Thomas is emerging as a symbol for the conservatives. His legal views, which were often dissents, are now becoming laws under Trump’s administration.
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