A federal judge once on the shortlist for the Supreme Court defended Clarence Thomas over the justice's relationship with billionaire Harlan Crow: 'Judges are just like every other human being'

• Judge Amul Thapar in his new book defended Clarence Thomas' relationship with megadonor Harlan Crow.
• Thapar told CNN that judges "have a diverse group of friends, and those friends don't influence the way we do our job."

A federal judge who has previously been on the shortlist for the Supreme Court has come out in defense of Justice Clarence Thomas over the jurist's relationship with the billionaire real estate developer Harlan Crow, criticizing what he says are "pot shots" being lobbed at the high court.

Amul Thapar, a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, recently released a new book centered on Thomas entitled "The People's Justice," where he delves into the conservative jurist's originalist judicial philosophy. In an interview with CNN, Thapar rejected any notion that Thomas' decisions had been influenced by luxury trips provided by Crow.

"Judges are just like every other human being," Thapar told the network. "We have a diverse group of friends, and those friends don't influence the way we do our job."

In the book, Thapar refuted what he said was an incorrect perception that originalism elevated the "rich over the poor, the strong over the weak, the corporation over the consumer." And while speaking with CNN, Thapar also suggested that media reports about Thomas didn't always offer a clear picture of the longtime Supreme Court justice.

"What they don't tell you is that he also has friends who are homeless, friends he meets in RV parks across the nation," the appeals court judge said.

Describing Thomas' decisions in cases ranging from affirmative action to property rights, Thapar argued that originalism "more often favors the ordinary people who come before the court — because the core idea behind originalism is honoring the will of the people."

Thapar didn't speak with CNN about the specifics of the relationship between Thomas and Crow, but said that in order to ascertain whether there are any unethical influences in a judge's decisions, one must examine their entire work.

"You can judge their works, and what they do, against what they've done in the past," Thapar told the network. "And if it's consistent, then it's hard to say anything influenced them."

Thapar — who in 2017 was nominated to the federal bench by former President Donald Trump — also remarked that it was "disheartening that people who know better are taking potshots at the court."

In April, ProPublica published a bombshell report that detailed how Thomas had taken luxury vacations funded by Crow for more than 20 years without disclosing the excursions.

Thomas, in a response to revelations about the previously undisclosed trips, said at the time that he was advised that it wasn't necessary to report "this sort of personal hospitality."

"Harlan and Kathy Crow are among our dearest friends, and we have been friends for over 25 years. As friends do, we have joined them on a number of family trips during the more than quarter century we have known them," the justice said in a statement released by the Supreme Court's press office.

Thomas stated that going forward, he would follow new guidelines set forth by the Judicial Conference of the United States.