Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, says she attended the rally near the White House on Jan. 6, 2021, but did not have a role in the Capitol attack or any plans around it.
Mrs. Thomas, a conservative lobbyist, told the Washington Free Beacon she was in the crowd at the Ellipse that morning and went home before President Donald Trump took the stage around noon.
“I was disappointed and frustrated that there was violence that happened following a peaceful gathering of Trump supporters on the Ellipse on Jan. 6,” she told the Washington Free Beacon. “There are important and legitimate substantive questions about achieving goals like electoral integrity, racial equality, and political accountability that a democratic system like ours needs to be able to discuss and debate rationally in the political square. I fear we are losing that ability.”
Mr. Trump told supporters that day to “fight like hell” as he contested the certification of his loss in the November 2020 election. Later on, his supporters stormed the Capitol as lawmakers inside were trying to certify the electoral votes.
Mrs. Thomas sat down with the Free Beacon to try and clear things up after major publications insinuated she played a behind-the-scenes role in the Jan. 6 attack, citing communications among her broader network of political contacts.
“I played no role with those who were planning and leading the Jan. 6 events,” she said. “There are stories in the press suggesting I paid or arranged for buses. I did not. There are other stories saying I mediated feuding factions of leaders for that day. I did not.”
Mrs. Thomas also rejected suggestions that her work in political circles compromises her husband’s ability to be an impartial jurist on the high court.
“Like so many married couples, we share many of the same ideals, principles, and aspirations for America,” she told the Free Beacon. “But we have our own separate careers, and our own ideas and opinions too. Clarence doesn’t discuss his work with me, and I don’t involve him in my work.”
• Tom Howell Jr. can be reached at thowell@washingtontimes.com.
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