Bar Group Rolls Up Welcome Mat (Conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas Beset But Not Deterred by Liberal Attacks, He Says)

On July 29, 1998, Justice Clarence Thomas spoke to the National Bar Association, the nation's largest organization of black lawyers. No, he did not wander in off the street; he slipped in through the side door of competing interests, just as he slipped onto the Supreme Court seven years ago.Then, Thomas could not get a majority vote from the bar association in support of his appointment This year, he disregarded the fact that a majority (more than 80 percent) of the executive committee of the Judicial Council voted to withdraw the invitation tendered unilaterally by the chairperson. Thomas came to the luncheon meeting and quickly announced that the present Clarence Thomas is no different than the Clarence Thomas of seven years ago.In a speech that laid blame for today's racial problems on everyone but himself, Thomas charged his critics with opposing him because he is a black conservative who does not espouse their liberal ideas. He has yet to recognize that his rejection is based upon his record, not his color