Wife of Justice Clarence Thomas is violating law

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Update to Wife of Justice Clarence Thomas launches a Tea Party organization.

Well, that didn't take long. The Los Angeles Times reports Virginia warns wife of Justice Clarence Thomas her group is violating law:

Virginia consumer-protection officials have warned the wife of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas that her advocacy group is improperly soliciting contributions in the state.

In a letter to Virginia Thomas on Thursday, the state Office of Consumer Affairs directed Liberty Central Inc. to the Virginia law that requires groups to register with the office or request an exemption before seeking donations for a charitable purpose.

Liberty Central is a Virginia-based group soliciting contributions online and is not registered or exempt, said Michael Wright, the manager of regulatory programs at the Office of Consumer Affairs, a branch of the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Under state law, political advocacy is considered a charitable purpose.

"They should be filed with us," he said.

Thomas is the president and chief executive of Liberty Central, a nonprofit group hoping to mobilize conservatives online.

The group, which is aiming to appeal to small-government "tea party" activists, was incorporated in Delaware in January and is registered with the Virginia State Corporation Commission.

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Soliciting donations for a charitable purpose without registering with the Office of Consumers Affairs could result in fines of up to $5,000 for each violation, the letter said.

So Virginia Thomas incorporates a non-profit organization for political advocacy, and she doesn't have an attorney review all the applicable laws for compliance? She's married to an attorney isn't she? I believe a Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court.

As is typical for any right-wing organization when they get caught violating the law, they blame everyone else:

Liberty Central asked for donations in an e-mail this week, after The Times reported on the group and Thomas' unprecedented role as an outspoken political advocate married to a Supreme Court justice.

"Although we're just getting started, we're already under attack from the left and its allies in the liberal media!" the e-mail said, noting The Times' story. "Our fully functioning Liberty Central website will launch in early May, but we invite you to send friends, family members and other known 'patriots' to subscribe or donate."

No one has ever confused the Los Angeles Times for the "liberal media." It has always been a conservative-leaning publication. The use of "liberal" to solicit funds from uninformed teabaggers simply demonstrated the knee-jerk response of the reactionary right. Like lemmings following each other over the cliff.