I wrote a letter to the Supreme Court itself. Told them to do something. Maybe if they got 300 million letters they would? When we serve we not only represent the will of the public-we also have direct oversight of the public process which means if an elected official is causing harm to the public trust we are required to intervene. Those at the highest levels are to police each other to protect our public process. The Supreme Court Justices should do this now. This has gone far enough. Not disclosing which Justice leaked the Dobbs decision was also a coverup. The other Justices need to act and expel Justice Thomas on his inability to follow the laws that safeguard our nation. We have a provision to get rid of an impaired President-this could apply to this situation as well. Clarence Thomas and his wife are incapable of following the law-he should not be allowed to make the law for the rest of us. His judgement is fatally flawed.
While I know there is a march planned on Saturday, April 15 by Women's March against the new abortion legislative decision, there needs to be a march against the Supreme Court at this point. At least one targeting Clarence Thomas and requesting that he be impeached. Now, I think Samuel Alido needs to be investigated too, but that is a next step. Right now, we need to go after the most obvious one, which is Clarence Thomas. The second thing is that I have personal experience with the complexities of college students voting. Even for high school students who are seniors, most teachers and professors make no effort to lighten the load so their students can vote. It is such a financial investment in this country that many skip voting over taking finals, and making it to class. Also, if they are not registered at school they need to be helped. The Democratic Party needs to do a series of videos targeted to the youth vote, because it is typically very low, and explain how to register, how to decide whether to register at home or at school, how to get a mail in ballot, and the reasons why the Democratic Party is the party for youth, not the Republican party.
And if you are a parent or grandparent of a young voting age person, you need to impress on them that this is their responsibility and essential if they want to build the kind of society they want. My parents drilled it into us that we must vote in every election and I’ve done the same with my kids
My daughter just turned 18 in time for a runoff election in Chicago. She registered and voted as soon as the polls opened. I was right with her casting my vote too. Our local polling place cheered her as a first time voter. Obviously it was not very crowded. The learning specialist in her high school invited all of the children who were old enough to vote to go with him to register. I still don't know if that turned into votes. I know those who did not vote because they could not get to the polling place in their parents district where they were registered after moving back home for grad school, and then just moving into the city, and that is too bad. More organization is needed, but everyone is not that organized in their teens and early 20s. The brain is not fully formed. This is on all of us to spread the word and explain how.
Leaking Alito’s Dobbs decision gave the various States enough lead time to pass ‘trigger’ laws that came in effect as soon as the decision was formally entered.
There are two persons willing to do that. One is Alito himself. The other is the criminal who has consistently refused to recuse himself from the cases involving his wife in the insurrection. Personally, I think it was the fanatic that wrote the Dobbs decision.
I am willing to bet this is only the tip of the iceberg. Why doesn’t it raise concerns for all Americans that a black SCOTUS justice is even “friends” with a racist admirer of authoritarians? If nothing else, it shows me that Thomas is a poor judge of character and easily duped. Just curious about what Anita Hill thinks of all this.
I have been thinking of all of the White male Democrats that sat by and ignored what was obviously a warning sign that Thomas was a bad apple. According to Wikipedia, Biden asked the Bush White House to have the FBI investigate the accusations of Thomas's harassment of Anita Hill after House Democratic women and other groups pressured him to reopen hearings. He also voted against him.
Here are the Democrats that voted for Thomas's approval. John Breaux (LA), David L. Boren (OK), Dennis DeConcini (AZ), Alan J. Dixon (IL) I am grateful he is gone from my State!, James J. Exon (NE), Wyche Fowler (GA), Earnest Hollings (SC), J. Bennett Johnston (LA), Sam Nunn (GA), Richard Shelby (AL).
Historically, we Americans have been entirely too trusting of our elected and appointed officials. We have expected them to serve with decency, dignity, and honor and to act in the best interests of the populace. It has become increasingly obvious and sad that our trust has been so severely misplaced.
You’re painting with a broad brush. While it’s true that politicians in general deserve the reputation of being too willing to break their political promises (or being “liars“) and compromise their principals, it is absolutely NOT true, that both parties do so equally.
It is the Republicans, and ONLY the Republicans, who are actively working to undermine our democracy in every way they possibly can. It is not “Congress has failed to act. Politicians can’t be trusted.“ It is “Republicans have blocked legislation. Republicans’ latest statement on the issue is yet another lie.“
Democrats are not perfect. But failing to make the distinction when criticizing politicians, is like failing to make the difference between a paper cut and a cut throat.
To those who pushed back, I did indeed paint with too broad a brush. I agree that many politicians are fine, upstanding citizens but it seems as if there are fewer than there used to be. And now Thomas joins the pack.
My local school board majority wants to ban and burn books and destroy our public schools, the governor is MAGA, and the War Against Northern Aggression is ongoing. We are a microcosm of Washington politics. Having been a career civil servant in DC for many years, my brushstrokes are much broader these days.
Don’t you find it ironic that these politicians are tryin to “protect” children from classic books and art as well as sex education, while they will do nothing to ban guns, the number one cause of children’s deaths in America?
I think you may be overly optimistic that such a reprogramming is possible. Behavior change comes when the person perceives there is a problem with their situation that they can change with what they choose to do. Frankly, I don’t see that happening.😢
Nope. Not anymore. There ARE a very few left of what I call "honest Republicans". (My dad was one - he didn't care at all about all this culture war BS - he just wanted the budget balanced and the gvt to not raise barriers to small businesses.) They have been marginalized almost out of existence. Even the "never tRumpers" still remaining in the Republican Party are anti-abortion, anti-poor, anti-women, anti- anti-anti-. Except guns - they are very much pro-gun. I am old enough to remember when the NRA was a gun safety organization! The NRA led the way on lobbying to ban mail-order sales of military weapons after JFK was killed by a $47 surplus military rifle (and the ads for those guns were a significant source of revenue for them. The back of "The American Rifleman" magazine was full of them.) They were onboard with the original assault weapons ban. One of my friends has made it a mantra for years now: There. Are. No. Good. Ones. I find it difficult to disagree.
I know. I feel like an idiot for thinking all those years that elected officials are most likely doing their job and I didn’t need to worry about it. I always voted, but I expected the governance system to “work” without putting much thought into HOW it works beyond the obvious basics. Trying to make up for my ignorance now.
I mean, I had excuses: overcoming a childhood scarred by mental illness & neglect, escaping an abusive marriage, being a single mom, working, getting educated, becoming financially stable, jumping socio-economic class ... you know, like many disadvantaged Americans who care about what is happening but don’t feel like they have much voice or choice.
Thank you, Sara. I’m sorry that many poor or otherwise disadvantaged people endure what they endure in this country, with such an abundance of resources. I feel that we need to raise the floor. And it bothers me that wanting more Americans to enjoy access to high quality healthcare, decent housing, sufficient food, a living wage, affordable transportation, and a good education with some equivalence in the resources needed to succeed (e.g., tutoring, SAT prep, help with college applications, access to internships, etc., not just school lunches) somehow means that you’re a socialist commie who is trying to enforce an authoritarian rule that steals from the “real” hard-working Americans.
My brothers and I sold my mother's house last year for $270,000. We have to report that on our income taxes. The amount we will have to pay to the NYS and the Federal Government is $88,000.... almost 1/3 of the sale of the house. We voters get kicked in the teeth for any little monetary gain we make; but those with money and power get to skate away. I makes me sick.
I’m assuming he had to pay the capital gains taxes. What he didn’t do is report the glaring conflict of interest. He hid it from us, and deliberately because it was that bad.
"I’m assuming he had to pay the capital gains taxes." I'm not. It would surprise me no end to find there was proof he declared and paid on everything he was supposed to for years now. I still wanna know if he declared and paid on those VERY expensive "gifts" he got from Crow. I mean - if I won the lottery and gifted, say, my sister $500K worth of private jet, yacht, and luxury accommodations, she would be required to declare and pay income tax on them, no?
Actually no, she wouldn’t, the recipient of a gift does not pay tax. And for the giver, gift tax gets wrapped up with estate taxes; too complex to explain here.
I expect that he also reported any income on his tax returns, but those are private. As they should be; even high-ranking government workers, other than Presidents, are entitled to this type of privacy.
If Uncle Clarence and Auntie Ginni file their Federal taxes jointly, they are equally paid by the employers/contractors. Ginni’s PAC salaries are equally Clarence’s , and yet he has never recused himself from a case that involves her PAC , its clients, nor the PAC’s private benefactors.
Has the IRS ever forensically audited any SCOTUS Justice? It would appear to be about 110 years past time to do so.
After they hit pay dirt with the Clarence Thomas vacation scandal, ProPublica obviously had a reason to think that there might be more to find. Lo and behold! Something even WORSE! Any miner that finds a seam follows it until it taps out. I wonder what will be next? It is difficult for me to believe that Harlan Crow is the only one feeding those appetites.
I expect absolutely no competent reporting by the major news networks. They fail us on a daily basis and if an informed public is all that keeps us from sliding further into this corrupt swamp, we're screwed. They will mention this in passing and it will have been forgotten in no time. The Republican plan is, and always has been to throw so much shit at the wall, that it's impossible to keep up. Good for ProPublica for this, but our main stream media doesn't have the desire nor the talent to do this. There will be little to no questioning of Republicans about their failure to denouce this. They will be given the microphone to spew their lies and their fascist agenda. As you can probably tell, I've lost quite a bit of hope that we'll survive this, with so many forces working to make sure we don't.
The major news networks won't cover this or will make it seem like nothing. Which is why I stopped watching them and instead get my news from many sources.
Roberts will go down in history as the man who allowed the court to wallow in the gutter and lose the respect of the American people. It is ALL on him. Thomas is just a crook.
"There is no honor among thieves," the saying goes. There is no honor among some members of the Supreme Court, and they are stealing our nation. Clarence Thomas is one of them. If he is not functioning well enough to understand the rules of disclosure how can he hope to decide important decisions. There should be a loss of mental fitness clause in every job, and he certainly has earned this to be questioned. Judges are not supposed to be legislating from the bench but that is what the Supreme Court is doing. However, Americans are waking up. Perhaps it is that having a president who prioritizes social welfare of the nation and the middle class, people are seeing what life can be like when you don't have a hysterical, maniac running the country. Calmer is better. Even with a pandemic, war in Ukraine and runaway inflation, calmer is better. Calm and steady, like the Tortoise and the Hare, wins the race. Let us hope this Aesops fable proves itself to be true again. Can calm and reliable be more attractive than chaos to people who do not suffer from mental illnesses which make chaos exciting? I believe it can. Let us just hope that our population recognizes the difference.
It seems there must have been 20-odd years of the old "wink and nod" over all these lavish vacation trips. Did no one notice or consider it ethically dubious (at best) until now? Was Thomas particularly shielded from scrutiny as a carry over from his Anita Hill-era "modern day lynching" rhetoric, or is all of SCOTUS considered untouchable? The current justices are, along party lines, either impeccably qualified or a line up of the "usual suspects". My rule of thumb, when it comes to rule of law, is that if an ordinary citizen would be charged for unlawful actions, then the extraordinary citizen should be as well, and if the ordinary employee/professional would be fired/brought up on ethics violations, then, again, the same standard should apply, with the same or perhaps greater consequences, commensurate with one's power and influence. Oh democracy, I am concerned
I think I need to repectfully disagree. They are public servants and we pay their salaries, so I would expect that if we chose to look into their finances, we should be able to do so.
Not sure about that. It's a very slippery slope. Would that also include ALL police officers and LE civilian employees? Committee persons? Trash collectors? The town's for-hire dog catcher? I get what you're saying, but this is the thing: There is so much nepotism and corruption in smaller towns (speaking from a ringside seat of experience) that it's impossible to draw a line between those who should be audited and those who should not--and that line fluctuates depending on who you might ask.
I wrote a letter to the Supreme Court itself. Told them to do something. Maybe if they got 300 million letters they would? When we serve we not only represent the will of the public-we also have direct oversight of the public process which means if an elected official is causing harm to the public trust we are required to intervene. Those at the highest levels are to police each other to protect our public process. The Supreme Court Justices should do this now. This has gone far enough. Not disclosing which Justice leaked the Dobbs decision was also a coverup. The other Justices need to act and expel Justice Thomas on his inability to follow the laws that safeguard our nation. We have a provision to get rid of an impaired President-this could apply to this situation as well. Clarence Thomas and his wife are incapable of following the law-he should not be allowed to make the law for the rest of us. His judgement is fatally flawed.
I think marching has proved to be quite effective. https://action.biggerthanroe.com/local
While I know there is a march planned on Saturday, April 15 by Women's March against the new abortion legislative decision, there needs to be a march against the Supreme Court at this point. At least one targeting Clarence Thomas and requesting that he be impeached. Now, I think Samuel Alido needs to be investigated too, but that is a next step. Right now, we need to go after the most obvious one, which is Clarence Thomas. The second thing is that I have personal experience with the complexities of college students voting. Even for high school students who are seniors, most teachers and professors make no effort to lighten the load so their students can vote. It is such a financial investment in this country that many skip voting over taking finals, and making it to class. Also, if they are not registered at school they need to be helped. The Democratic Party needs to do a series of videos targeted to the youth vote, because it is typically very low, and explain how to register, how to decide whether to register at home or at school, how to get a mail in ballot, and the reasons why the Democratic Party is the party for youth, not the Republican party.
And if you are a parent or grandparent of a young voting age person, you need to impress on them that this is their responsibility and essential if they want to build the kind of society they want. My parents drilled it into us that we must vote in every election and I’ve done the same with my kids
My daughter just turned 18 in time for a runoff election in Chicago. She registered and voted as soon as the polls opened. I was right with her casting my vote too. Our local polling place cheered her as a first time voter. Obviously it was not very crowded. The learning specialist in her high school invited all of the children who were old enough to vote to go with him to register. I still don't know if that turned into votes. I know those who did not vote because they could not get to the polling place in their parents district where they were registered after moving back home for grad school, and then just moving into the city, and that is too bad. More organization is needed, but everyone is not that organized in their teens and early 20s. The brain is not fully formed. This is on all of us to spread the word and explain how.
Something Apr 21 calling for assault weapons ban too
This comment needs to be published on every ‘Liberal’ social media site, and in every local & state newspaper.
Leaking Alito’s Dobbs decision gave the various States enough lead time to pass ‘trigger’ laws that came in effect as soon as the decision was formally entered.
There are two persons willing to do that. One is Alito himself. The other is the criminal who has consistently refused to recuse himself from the cases involving his wife in the insurrection. Personally, I think it was the fanatic that wrote the Dobbs decision.
Sadly, I believe that you sent a letter to the foxes regarding the chickens.
I am willing to bet this is only the tip of the iceberg. Why doesn’t it raise concerns for all Americans that a black SCOTUS justice is even “friends” with a racist admirer of authoritarians? If nothing else, it shows me that Thomas is a poor judge of character and easily duped. Just curious about what Anita Hill thinks of all this.
I have been thinking of all of the White male Democrats that sat by and ignored what was obviously a warning sign that Thomas was a bad apple. According to Wikipedia, Biden asked the Bush White House to have the FBI investigate the accusations of Thomas's harassment of Anita Hill after House Democratic women and other groups pressured him to reopen hearings. He also voted against him.
https://thehill.com/regulation/court-battles/472397-clarence-thomas-blasts-his-biden-led-confirmation-hearings-the-idea-was-to-get-rid/
Here are the Democrats that voted for Thomas's approval. John Breaux (LA), David L. Boren (OK), Dennis DeConcini (AZ), Alan J. Dixon (IL) I am grateful he is gone from my State!, James J. Exon (NE), Wyche Fowler (GA), Earnest Hollings (SC), J. Bennett Johnston (LA), Sam Nunn (GA), Richard Shelby (AL).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clarence_Thomas_Supreme_Court_nomination
All of these people are now gone, and we are well rid of them. We are however, stuck with the outcome of their support.
Historically, we Americans have been entirely too trusting of our elected and appointed officials. We have expected them to serve with decency, dignity, and honor and to act in the best interests of the populace. It has become increasingly obvious and sad that our trust has been so severely misplaced.
You’re painting with a broad brush. While it’s true that politicians in general deserve the reputation of being too willing to break their political promises (or being “liars“) and compromise their principals, it is absolutely NOT true, that both parties do so equally.
It is the Republicans, and ONLY the Republicans, who are actively working to undermine our democracy in every way they possibly can. It is not “Congress has failed to act. Politicians can’t be trusted.“ It is “Republicans have blocked legislation. Republicans’ latest statement on the issue is yet another lie.“
Democrats are not perfect. But failing to make the distinction when criticizing politicians, is like failing to make the difference between a paper cut and a cut throat.
To those who pushed back, I did indeed paint with too broad a brush. I agree that many politicians are fine, upstanding citizens but it seems as if there are fewer than there used to be. And now Thomas joins the pack.
My local school board majority wants to ban and burn books and destroy our public schools, the governor is MAGA, and the War Against Northern Aggression is ongoing. We are a microcosm of Washington politics. Having been a career civil servant in DC for many years, my brushstrokes are much broader these days.
Don’t you find it ironic that these politicians are tryin to “protect” children from classic books and art as well as sex education, while they will do nothing to ban guns, the number one cause of children’s deaths in America?
I find it disgusting, horrific, cruel, and unimaginable, not to mention ironic!
I wonder how long it will take to reprogram the MAGA people once T is gone...?
I think you may be overly optimistic that such a reprogramming is possible. Behavior change comes when the person perceives there is a problem with their situation that they can change with what they choose to do. Frankly, I don’t see that happening.😢
Well, we’ll still have MTG. McCarthy, DeSantis, Sununu, and others….
There are still some good ones though.
Nope. Not anymore. There ARE a very few left of what I call "honest Republicans". (My dad was one - he didn't care at all about all this culture war BS - he just wanted the budget balanced and the gvt to not raise barriers to small businesses.) They have been marginalized almost out of existence. Even the "never tRumpers" still remaining in the Republican Party are anti-abortion, anti-poor, anti-women, anti- anti-anti-. Except guns - they are very much pro-gun. I am old enough to remember when the NRA was a gun safety organization! The NRA led the way on lobbying to ban mail-order sales of military weapons after JFK was killed by a $47 surplus military rifle (and the ads for those guns were a significant source of revenue for them. The back of "The American Rifleman" magazine was full of them.) They were onboard with the original assault weapons ban. One of my friends has made it a mantra for years now: There. Are. No. Good. Ones. I find it difficult to disagree.
I should have been clearer. I meant good democrats not good republicans.
I know. I feel like an idiot for thinking all those years that elected officials are most likely doing their job and I didn’t need to worry about it. I always voted, but I expected the governance system to “work” without putting much thought into HOW it works beyond the obvious basics. Trying to make up for my ignorance now.
I mean, I had excuses: overcoming a childhood scarred by mental illness & neglect, escaping an abusive marriage, being a single mom, working, getting educated, becoming financially stable, jumping socio-economic class ... you know, like many disadvantaged Americans who care about what is happening but don’t feel like they have much voice or choice.
I am very sorry for what you have endured during your lifetime. Your obvious determination and perseverance are very admirable.
Thank you, Sara. I’m sorry that many poor or otherwise disadvantaged people endure what they endure in this country, with such an abundance of resources. I feel that we need to raise the floor. And it bothers me that wanting more Americans to enjoy access to high quality healthcare, decent housing, sufficient food, a living wage, affordable transportation, and a good education with some equivalence in the resources needed to succeed (e.g., tutoring, SAT prep, help with college applications, access to internships, etc., not just school lunches) somehow means that you’re a socialist commie who is trying to enforce an authoritarian rule that steals from the “real” hard-working Americans.
I totally agree.
Such clear and intelligent writing, Jay. Thank you so much for your time and efforts!
I wonder if Clarence Thomas were to resign, how many “family trips” would the Thomases be invited to.
Oh, I know the answer. Well, it’s really a range - from zero to none.
And his mother would be living in a tent on a street corner. If she's lucky.
He probably tells his Mom he’s paying for everything. Credit hogging is so less severe than anything else he’s done. At least it’s legal.
Zip point squat, I’m sure!
Excellent question.
The new motto of the GOP: The rules don't apply to us.
That’s always been their rule.
At least since they the 1960s.
My brothers and I sold my mother's house last year for $270,000. We have to report that on our income taxes. The amount we will have to pay to the NYS and the Federal Government is $88,000.... almost 1/3 of the sale of the house. We voters get kicked in the teeth for any little monetary gain we make; but those with money and power get to skate away. I makes me sick.
I’m assuming he had to pay the capital gains taxes. What he didn’t do is report the glaring conflict of interest. He hid it from us, and deliberately because it was that bad.
I would be surprised if he paid the capital gains taxes.
At this point, I assume nothing that correlates with any propriety or accountability
What makes you think Uncle Clarence reported anything to the IRS?
"I’m assuming he had to pay the capital gains taxes." I'm not. It would surprise me no end to find there was proof he declared and paid on everything he was supposed to for years now. I still wanna know if he declared and paid on those VERY expensive "gifts" he got from Crow. I mean - if I won the lottery and gifted, say, my sister $500K worth of private jet, yacht, and luxury accommodations, she would be required to declare and pay income tax on them, no?
Actually no, she wouldn’t, the recipient of a gift does not pay tax. And for the giver, gift tax gets wrapped up with estate taxes; too complex to explain here.
I expect that he also reported any income on his tax returns, but those are private. As they should be; even high-ranking government workers, other than Presidents, are entitled to this type of privacy.
If Uncle Clarence and Auntie Ginni file their Federal taxes jointly, they are equally paid by the employers/contractors. Ginni’s PAC salaries are equally Clarence’s , and yet he has never recused himself from a case that involves her PAC , its clients, nor the PAC’s private benefactors.
Has the IRS ever forensically audited any SCOTUS Justice? It would appear to be about 110 years past time to do so.
Jay, Thanks for your in depth analysis. Wish I could write as well as you after a late night lol. Have a great weekend 💙
After they hit pay dirt with the Clarence Thomas vacation scandal, ProPublica obviously had a reason to think that there might be more to find. Lo and behold! Something even WORSE! Any miner that finds a seam follows it until it taps out. I wonder what will be next? It is difficult for me to believe that Harlan Crow is the only one feeding those appetites.
Walmart should set aside and mark “vacation” parking slots for Clarence and Ginny’s next two-week summer sojourn.
I expect absolutely no competent reporting by the major news networks. They fail us on a daily basis and if an informed public is all that keeps us from sliding further into this corrupt swamp, we're screwed. They will mention this in passing and it will have been forgotten in no time. The Republican plan is, and always has been to throw so much shit at the wall, that it's impossible to keep up. Good for ProPublica for this, but our main stream media doesn't have the desire nor the talent to do this. There will be little to no questioning of Republicans about their failure to denouce this. They will be given the microphone to spew their lies and their fascist agenda. As you can probably tell, I've lost quite a bit of hope that we'll survive this, with so many forces working to make sure we don't.
The major news networks won't cover this or will make it seem like nothing. Which is why I stopped watching them and instead get my news from many sources.
Sharing this excellent write up.
Roberts will go down in history as the man who allowed the court to wallow in the gutter and lose the respect of the American people. It is ALL on him. Thomas is just a crook.
And George W Bush led the charge—nominated some of the WORST judges in our history
"There is no honor among thieves," the saying goes. There is no honor among some members of the Supreme Court, and they are stealing our nation. Clarence Thomas is one of them. If he is not functioning well enough to understand the rules of disclosure how can he hope to decide important decisions. There should be a loss of mental fitness clause in every job, and he certainly has earned this to be questioned. Judges are not supposed to be legislating from the bench but that is what the Supreme Court is doing. However, Americans are waking up. Perhaps it is that having a president who prioritizes social welfare of the nation and the middle class, people are seeing what life can be like when you don't have a hysterical, maniac running the country. Calmer is better. Even with a pandemic, war in Ukraine and runaway inflation, calmer is better. Calm and steady, like the Tortoise and the Hare, wins the race. Let us hope this Aesops fable proves itself to be true again. Can calm and reliable be more attractive than chaos to people who do not suffer from mental illnesses which make chaos exciting? I believe it can. Let us just hope that our population recognizes the difference.
It seems there must have been 20-odd years of the old "wink and nod" over all these lavish vacation trips. Did no one notice or consider it ethically dubious (at best) until now? Was Thomas particularly shielded from scrutiny as a carry over from his Anita Hill-era "modern day lynching" rhetoric, or is all of SCOTUS considered untouchable? The current justices are, along party lines, either impeccably qualified or a line up of the "usual suspects". My rule of thumb, when it comes to rule of law, is that if an ordinary citizen would be charged for unlawful actions, then the extraordinary citizen should be as well, and if the ordinary employee/professional would be fired/brought up on ethics violations, then, again, the same standard should apply, with the same or perhaps greater consequences, commensurate with one's power and influence. Oh democracy, I am concerned
I think I need to repectfully disagree. They are public servants and we pay their salaries, so I would expect that if we chose to look into their finances, we should be able to do so.
Not sure about that. It's a very slippery slope. Would that also include ALL police officers and LE civilian employees? Committee persons? Trash collectors? The town's for-hire dog catcher? I get what you're saying, but this is the thing: There is so much nepotism and corruption in smaller towns (speaking from a ringside seat of experience) that it's impossible to draw a line between those who should be audited and those who should not--and that line fluctuates depending on who you might ask.
Will the greed and lying ever stop? It's exhausting!
Doubtful. But our vigilance and demands for accountability will never stop either.