Kellyanne Conway is now caught up in Clarence Thomas' latest ethics scandal
ERIC BARADAT, Mark Wilson/Getty Images
- Kellyanne Conway helped route a payment to Clarence Thomas' wife, Ginni Thomas, according to the Washington Post.
- Conservative activist Leonard Leo told Conway to keep Ginni's name out of the billing paperwork.
- It's the latest ethics scandal to hit Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
The ongoing ethics scandal surrounding Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas now has a new player involved: Kellyanne Conway.
According to a report from the Washington Post, conservative judicial activist Leonard Leo wanted to send thousands of dollars to Virginia "Ginni" Thomas, the wife of Clarence Thomas, in 2012.
But, he didn't want her named in the payment paperwork, the Washington Post reported.
So, he asked Kellyanne Conway, then a GOP pollster, for help routing the money from Judicial Education Project, a nonprofit Leo advised, to Ginni Thomas for consultation work.
Leo told Conway to make "no mention of Ginni, of course," according to documents reviewed by the Post, and bill the nonprofit "another $25k."
Conway and the Supreme Court did not respond to Insider's request for comment. The Federalist Society — where Leo serves on the board of directors — and Leo's firm CRC Advisors also didn't immediately respond.
In a statement to the Post, Leo defended the payments saying: "it is no secret that Ginni Thomas has a long history of working on issues within the conservative movement, and part of that work has involved gauging public attitudes and sentiment. The work she did here did not involve anything connected with either the Court's business or with other legal issues."
When asked why he asked that Ginni Thomas' name be kept off the paperwork, Leo told the Post that he was trying to "protect the privacy of Justice Thomas and Ginni."
The same year Conway reportedly helped send the money to Ginni, the nonprofit that paid her submitted an amicus brief to the Supreme Court about a landmark voting rights case.
Though Justice Thomas didn't cite the nonprofit's brief, he did vote in favor of the side they supported.
The silent payment to Ginni Thomas is the latest in a series of ethical concerns to surface surrounding Justice Thomas' financial affairs, including his cozy relationship with billionaire Harlan Crow, who paid for lavish vacations, bought Thomas' mother's house, and paid for his child's education.