DOJ: Bribery is Okay for Clarence Thomas, But Criminal for NYC Mayor Eric Adams

By: Donald V. Watkins

Copyrighted and Published on September 28, 2024

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas (left), New York City Mayor Eric Adams (right).

An Editorial Opinion

This week, the Biden/Harris Department of Justice (DOJ) charged New York City Mayor Eric Adams with bribery and fraud offenses as part of a "long-running" scheme that has upended politics in America's largest city. 

Adams is alleged to have accepted illegal gifts worth over $123,000 from Turkish citizens and at least one government official, which he did not disclose on his annual ethics forms.  In exchange, Turkish officials are alleged to have sought favors from the mayor, including help skirting safety regulations to open a consulate in New York, according to prosecutors.

In Washington, Justice Clarence Thomas has been selling his vote on the U.S. Supreme Court for 32 years.  In the last 20 years, alone, Thomas received over $4,000,000 in undisclosed "gifts" for himself, his wife, his mother, and his adopted son from billionaire “friend” Harlan Crowe. It is no coincidence that Crowe is closely tied to the litigants who benefitted from Thomas's vote on the Court.

The "gifts" to Thomas, which were undisclosed at the time of the "gifting" but unearth through investigative reporting over the last three years, have made Thomas a proud and arrogant multimillionaire.

Biden/Harris-appointed prosecutors at the DOJ have given Clarence Thomas a prosecutorial "pass" on his proven bribery and fraud conduct. Yet, they are prosecuting Adams over $123,000 in alleged bribery and fraud conduct. This is a classic example of weak political leadership and selective prosecution.

The White House and Vice President Kamala Harris (who touts her credentials as a former prosecutor) must explain, right now, why Clarence Thomas is immune from criminal prosecution, but Eric Adams is not. 

In America, we cannot have two vastly different standards of justice for bribery and fraud offenses involving public officials.