Last week, ProPublica revealed some unflattering things about Clarence Thomas. Evidently the controversial Supreme Court justice has spent the last 20+ years being wined and dined and jetted around the world by two GOP mega-donors. That’s not exactly great on its face, but Thomas had kept these luxury vacations a secret, disobeying a law that requires him to report any “gifts” he receives. To make matters even worse, one of those donors is really into Hitler and Nazi memorabilia.
When Republican megadonor Harlan Crow isn’t lavishing Justice Clarence Thomas with free trips on his private plane and yacht (in possible violation of Supreme Court ethics rules), he lives a quiet life in Dallas among his historical collections. These collections include Hitler artifacts—two of his paintings of European cityscapes, a signed copy of Mein Kampf, and assorted Nazi memorabilia—plus a garden full of statues of the 20th century’s worst despots.
Crow has spoken of his unusual home décor before, saying he’s filled his home with mementos from some of the worst monsters in history because he hates fascism and communism, not because he likes it. One person who visited Crow’s estate for a fundraising event in 2015 was gobsmacked by how he’d decorated it:
“I still can’t get over the collection of Nazi memorabilia,” says one person who attended an event at Crow’s home a few years ago and asked to remain anonymous. “It would have been helpful to have someone explain the significance of all the items. Without that context, you sort of just gasp when you walk into the room.” One memorable aspect was the paintings: “something done by George W. Bush next to a Norman Rockwell next to one by Hitler.” They also said it was “startling” and “strange” to see the dictator sculptures in the backyard.
That backyard, which he calls “the Garden of Eden,” also features statues of Vladimir Lenin, Josef Stalin, Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, and Yugoslav dictator Josip Broz Tito.
For what it’s worth, Crow’s home doesn’t only feature Nazi crap. It also boasts “documents signed by the likes of Christopher Columbus and George Washington; paintings by Renoir and Monet; statues of two of Crow’s heroes, Winston Churchill and Margaret Thatcher.”
And so one of the Supremes, who has a lifetime position to meddle in the lives of all Americans, who’s already married to a QAnon conspiracy theorist, likes to go on lavish vacations funded by someone who hates dictators so much he’s filled his home with their spoils. Cool.
(Via The Washingtonian)