Ron Wyden presses Harlan Crow for documents related to Justice Clarence Thomas gifts

WASHINGTON –  Sen. Ron Wyden, an Oregon Democrat and the chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, on Monday asked Texas billionaire Harlan Crow to voluntarily turn over information about gifts to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. 

In a letter, Wyden asserted the gifts – which included lavish travel aboard luxury yachts and private jets – implicated the federal tax code. It's the latest instance of Senate Democrats asking for detail about the relationship between Thomas and Crow.

"This unprecedented arrangement between a wealthy benefactor and a Supreme Court justice raises serious concerns related to federal tax and ethics laws," Wyden wrote.

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., on Thursday requested that Chief Justice John Roberts testify at a hearing next month about ethical rules that govern the Supreme Court. Complaints about Thomas' decision not to disclose the gifts from Crow have been referred to a committee of the Juridical Conference that reviews disclosure rules. 

The back-and-forth follows a series of ProPublica stories this month that identified luxury trips Thomas accepted from Crow, including international travel. Another story documented property Crow bought from Thomas and members of his family.

Bloomberg, meanwhile, reported Monday that Crow's family had a non-controlling interest in a company involved in an appeal before the Supreme Court in 2005. The court declined to grant the appeal involving Trammell Crow Residential Co. There were no noted recusals in the case, suggesting Thomas took part in that decision. 

Earlier this month, in response to the initial ProPublica story about his travel, Thomas said he was "advised that this sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the court, was not reportable."

"I have endeavored to follow that counsel throughout my tenure," Thomas said in a statement, "and have always sought to comply with the disclosure guidelines."