Clarence Thomas in Joe Biden biography by Jules Witcover
On Abortion:
1991: There us a right to privacy in the 14th Amendment
When Thomas said he believed "there is a right to privacy in the Fourteenth Amendment," Biden seized the opportunity. "Well, Judge," he asked, "does that right to privacy in the Liberty Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protect the right of a
woman to decide for herself in certain instances whether or not to terminate a pregnancy?" Thomas artfully dodged. "Senator, I think that the
Supreme Court has made clear that the issue of marital privacy is protected, that the state cannot infringe on that without a compelling interest, and the Supreme Court, of course, in the case of Roe v. Wade has found as a fundamental interest
a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy." And he added: "I do not think that at this time I could maintain my impartiality as a member of the judiciary and comment on that specific case."
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.258
Oct 5, 2010
On Abortion:
1991: Never thought about Roe v. Wade while in law school
Senator Patrick Leahy peppered Thomas with questions about whether he had ever discussed or debated Roe v. Wade when he was at Yale Law School, the judge denied it. He cast himself as a sort of social recluse and a grind who had little time beyond
studying and working to engage in such musings: "My schedule was that I went to classes and generally went to work and went home." Leahy registered incredulity: "I'm sure you are not suggesting that there wasn't any discussion at any time of
Roe v. Wade?" Thomas replied, "Senator, I cannot remember personally engaging in those discussions." Leahy: "Well, was it properly decided or not?" Thomas: "I have not made a decision one way or the other with respect to that important decision.
Much later, Leahy said Thomas's responses that he had never even thought about Roe v. Wade as a law student were so preposterous that they cost him the senator's vote."
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.259-260
Oct 5, 2010
On Principles & Values:
1991: Accused of sexual harassment by Anita Hill
Five days before the Thomas confirmation hearings were to begin, an aide, acting on a tip from a Thomas critic, telephoned a young black law professor at the University of Oklahoma named Anita Hill, to inquire about the judge. The call set off a chain
reaction that plunged the politics of the nation into a melodrama seldom seen since the Watergate scandal.A decade earlier, Anita Hill had worked for Thomas at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She made shocking allegations of sexual
harassment by Thomas at the EEOC. Biden, as chair of the Judiciary Committee, decided to send the FBI to talk directly to the woman. She wrote a four-page account of her accusations against the judge.
When confronted, Thomas said, "It just didn't
happen. I wouldn't do that. Black men are always accused of that." [When the news reached the public], Biden called a quick second round of hearings. [Anita Hill testified at length about sexual harassment by Thomas, and Thomas was confirmed anyway].
Source: A Life of Trial & Redemption, by Jules Witcover, p.260-265
Oct 5, 2010
Page last updated: Feb 14, 2019