Virginia “Ginni” Thomas, the wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, says the call she placed to Anita Hill in October “was probably a mistake on my part.”
Thomas’ voicemail to Hill drew a great deal of media attention at the time. In it, Thomas asked Hill to apologize for the testimony she gave at Justice Thomas’ confirmation hearings in 1991. Then, in November, news broke that Thomas would step down as leader of Liberty Central, the Tea Party-inspired group she founded.
Thomas made the admission about the Hill call in an interview with The Daily Caller. She called the message “a private matter,” and said it was “laughable” to link the call with her resignation. According to The Daily Caller, Thomas “stressed that she still plans to spend the bulk of her time working as a consultant for the organization’s newly-formed alliance with the Patrick Henry Center for Individual Liberty.”
In the article that broke the news of Thomas’ resignation, Liberty Central spokesperson Caitlin Carroll told The Washington Post that Thomas would be taking “a back seat so that Liberty Central can continue with its mission without any of the distractions.” After the Post story was published, Liberty Central then pushed back strongly on the Post reporter’s account and said the reporter had “breached confidentiality.”
Eric Lach
Eric Lach is a reporter for TPM. From 2010 to 2011, he was a news writer in charge of the website’s front page. He has previously written for The Daily, NewYorker.com, GlobalPost and other publications. He can be reached at ericl(at)talkingpoitnsmemo.com
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