It’s hard to find pictures of Supreme Court Justices together. This picture of Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas was cropped from one of the court’s annual class pictures. Behind the two right-wingers is not a ghostly apparition but Sonia Sotomayor’s cravat, scarf or whatever.

ProPublica is back on the SCOTUS grift beat with a story that ties everything together. It has such a long title that I cut and pasted it: A “Delicate Matter”: Clarence Thomas’ Private Complaints About Money Sparked Fears He Would Resign.

That’s a mouthful. I’m on the record as preferring short, snappy, and suggestive titles but the article makes an important point:

“At the resort, Thomas gave a speech at an off-the-record conservative conference [in 2000] . He found himself seated next to a Republican member of Congress on the flight home. The two men talked, and the lawmaker left the conversation worried that Thomas might resign.

Congress should give Supreme Court justices a pay raise, Thomas told him. If lawmakers didn’t act, “one or more justices will leave soon” — maybe in the next year.

At the time, Thomas’ salary was $173,600, equivalent to over $300,000 today. But he was one of the least wealthy members of the court, and on multiple occasions in that period, he pushed for ways to make more money. In other private conversations, Thomas repeatedly talked about removing a ban on justices giving paid speeches.”

We’ve all known people who talk incessantly about money and how they wish they had more. I usually avoid people like that but I had one relative who loved talking about OPM: Other people’s money. She found it endlessly fascinating. I found OPM chatter endlessly dull. Oh well, what the hell.

Justice Scalia also felt underpaid. He had a slightly more valid case as he had nine children. Nino was a randy little devil. I am not making this up.

The threat of Corrupt Clarence’s resignation acted like a bat signal to Congress, Chief Justice Rehnquist, and wealthy GOP donors like Hitler art collector, Harlan Crow. They sprang into action: the Justices eventually got a raise and the Harlan Crows of the world lavished largesse on Thomas and Scalia.

Make sure you read the whole damn article. You’ll draw the same conclusion: Judicial panhandling worked.

The last word goes to The Temptations followed by The Rolling Stones: