Ginni Thomas, Wife of Supreme Court Justice, Speaks to House Panel Investigating Jan. 6

Ginni Thomas, wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, walks to a meeting with the House Jan. 6 Committee, in Washington on Sept. 29, 2022. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

The wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Sept. 29 met with the House of Representatives panel investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, breach of the U.S. Capitol.

Ginni Thomas, who was in communication after the 2020 election with then-White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and a lawyer who advocated for delaying the electoral count, appeared on Capitol Hill in Washington to answer questions from the panel after months of negotiations.

Thomas did not answer questions from reporters, but said she was looking forward to meeting with the panel.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.), a member of the panel, said that members wanted to ask Thomas about her discussions with Meadows and the lawyer, John Eastman.

“John Eastman is the same individual who came up with this idea and scheme that a federal judge has ruled was likely illegal,” Aguilar told reporters, referring to an opinion entered in a civil case against Eastman.

Eastman has said that Vice President Mike Pence had the authority under the 12th Amendment to reject electoral slates, but Pence announced the morning of the electoral certification that he believed he did not.

Thomas answered questions behind closed doors. The panel has not released any transcripts from its more than 1,000 interviews, though it has indicated it will release a report and has made public snippets of some of the conversations.

Chairman

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), chairman of the Jan. 6 panel, told reporters that Thomas told members during the meeting that she thought that the 2020 election was stolen. Thomas also answered some questions.

“Earlier today, Ginni Thomas participated in a voluntary interview with the J6 Committee. She was happy to cooperate with the Committee to clear up the misconceptions about her activities surrounding the 2020 elections,” a lawyer for Thomas told news outlets in a statement. “She answered all the Committee’s questions.”

Thomas was concerned about “fraud and irregularities” in the election and informed the committee that her only involvement was working to ensure reports of fraud and irregularities were investigated.

The meeting came one day after what was scheduled to be the panel’s final public hearing. It was postponed due to Hurricane Ian hitting Florida. Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.), a member of the panel, represents a portion of the state.

Thompson said he did not yet have a date for the rescheduled hearing, but that it would take place before the Nov. 8 midterm elections.

The Jan. 6 panel is likely to be dissolved if Republicans seize control of the House in the midterms. Political forecasters say the GOP would flip the lower chamber, though many are uncertain as to which party will end up with a majority in the Senate.

Reuters contributed to this report.