There has recently been a continual barrage of media against Justice Clarence Thomas and his friendship with businessman Harlan Crow. But why is this vitriolic hatred so constant? What is the goal of the media and the political left in incessantly attacking these men and their relationship? Justice Thomas has a lifetime appointment, and short of impeachment, which is almost impossible, he will only leave the bench when he decides to and not before. The Justice has demonstrated integrity throughout his career and life, and it is doubtful he would ever end a decades-long friendship because of political pressure. So why is the media continually hounding and attacking these two men?
For almost 40 years, I have been a member of The Magic Castle, the premier private club for magicians in the country. As such, I learned a long time ago to “look for what’s really behind the curtain.” This has not only helped me in counseling but sometimes allows a different view of political moments to take shape.
Ostensibly, these constant attacks are on Thomas. But if we look behind the curtain, there is a much more insidious plan percolating. While attacking Justice Thomas is a benefit to the left, the real target is Mr. Crow, and ultimately, Republican candidates nationwide.
Harlan Crow is a billionaire businessman with a passion for history, especially history that surrounds freedom, liberty, and this nation in particular. His private library includes manuscripts, books, and art that cover five centuries and include the writings of every signer of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Like all great historians, Crow has a small portion of his collection (less than one percent) that includes items about the villains of history such as Hitler, Mao, Stalin, and Castro so that their horrors are remembered and never repeated. It is this small area that the media have been focusing on, calling him a Hitler-lover and using his remembrances of the evil-doers as a weapon against Justice Thomas. The attacks claim that Crow worships Hitler et al (he does not in any way, and is rather a man who understands the value of honest history), and so the Justice is attacked for “being friends with a Nazi lover.” Similarly, Justice Thomas has been getting attacked for his family friendship with the Crows, and the media have been accusing both men of financial improprieties.
The attacks are lies, and given that the Justice will only leave office when he is ready, why this constant media barrage against Mr. Crow? What’s the actual strategy?
Related: When Baseless Hatred Becomes the Norm
To understand the left’s goal, we need to look at another one of Mr. Crow’s passions: politics. Mr. Crow is a true conservative, and according to reports, has contributed more than $30 million over the last three decades to GOP candidates and the party. I believe it is for this reason that these attacks are so vitriolic against him.
One of the greatest weapons the progressive Democrats have in their fight to take over this nation is the money of kingmaker George Soros. Soros spent over $125 million in the last midterm election alone. Through his different entities, Soros has reportedly donated hundreds of millions and possibly even billions to leftist candidates over the years. These Soros dollars have helped put extreme leftists into national and local offices. In 2015, Soros started getting involved in local politics, and District Attorneys around the nation who are anti-police and pro-crime — such as New York’s Bragg and Los Angeles’ Gascon — owe their careers to Soros’ donations. Stacy Abrams, the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Chuck Schumer, and more have been beneficiaries of Soros’s money, and his donations have been highly successful in putting extreme leftists in positions of power. The left knows how money can translate to success in elections. The greatest Republican answer to Soros was Sheldon Adelson, z”l, may his memory be a blessing. Adelson gave over $400 million to Republican candidates and causes in the last years of his life. But with his death in January of 2021, many of the other large donors to Republican causes and candidates have become even more vitally important to counteract Soros’ influence.
And now we start to see the deeper plan of the left in attacking Harlan Crow.
Mr. Crow is a man who lives his beliefs, and will undoubtedly continue to offer his financial help to conservative candidates and causes. But it would be a tremendous success for the left if they were able to take Mr. Crow’s finances out of the political equation.
Consider the following example scenario that could happen in the near future. “Mr. Peloni” is considering running to be the District Attorney of Los Angeles, and he knows it will be an expensive battle. He is offered a contribution by Mr. Crow to help in that battle, but is reminded by those around him of what happens to people who get involved with Mr. Crow based on what is currently happening to Justice Thomas. Peloni’s advisors, family, and friends counsel him not to take Mr. Crow’s donation, lest the campaign becomes labeled as being affiliated with “a Nazi lover.” “Look”, they say to candidate Peloni. “Look how a friendship with Harlan Crow hurt someone as powerful as Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. If you accept Crow’s money, you will never recover. You’ll be labeled pro-Hitler and be destroyed politically.” The candidate chooses not to accept Mr. Crow’s generosity, and as a result, the campaign would be financially at a disadvantage to the Soros-sponsored candidate.
If this seems like too much “looking behind the curtain,” realize it has already been attempted by the Democratic establishment as part of their playbook. In 2015, Debbie Wasserman Schultz used this exact same play to try to discredit Presidential candidate Marco Rubio. The exact scenario as detailed above, only with Crow and Rubio rather than Justice Thomas.
And there are other examples of this Democratic strategy. In 2012, shortly before the elections, Sheldon Adelson was accused of prostitution and organized crime by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, a claim they finally retracted. A brief scan of the internet finds dozens of large GOP donors accused of improprieties in the last few years. While the majority of these accusations seem baseless on their face, they are strong enough to make GOP candidates pause about receiving contributions. The left has realized that if they can control the flow of money to GOP candidates, it gives them a huge advantage in the elections. So rather than fight the candidates, they attack the donors.
Yes, the left will attack Justice Thomas at every opportunity. He doesn’t fit their mold of what a Black man should be, and they hate him for his courage and strength. But the undiscussed leftist goal here is to smear the reputation of Mr. Crow, who has demonstrated for decades his commitment to conservatism, American values, and the power of history through his library and philanthropy. It is his reputation they wish to destroy even more than Justice Thomas, so that they can take another player out of their way in their pursuit of power both in national and local elections.
My prayer is for both the Thomas and Crow families to stay safe, healthy, and strongly committed to their values. And my prayer for all of us is that we see behind the curtain to the larger agenda of the left, and continue to support Justice Thomas, Mr. Crow, and all donors to conservative causes that we believe in.
In Judaism, prayer must be accompanied by action. While most of us are unable to financially support causes in the same way and to the same degree as Mr. Crow, Adelson, or other mega-donors, we all have the ability to help. We can make small donations to the candidates of our choice, and those small donations help and are meaningful! We can donate our time and energy to the causes and candidates we believe in. We can join PJ Media as a VIP and support the work done here that is so important, and yet entirely left out of mainstream media outlets.
May we all emulate the actions of men like Harlan Crow and Sheldon Adelson, and give of our resources to worthy organizations and people. And may we all have the courage of Justice Thomas to both stand up for what we believe and to never subjugate our values to external pressures.
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