HBO host John Oliver is once again offering $1 million annually to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas if he agrees to step down. Oliver initially made the offer in February, but Thomas never responded.
HBO host John Oliver is re-upping his offer to pay Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas $1 million annually if he steps down from the high court.
Oliver, who hosts "Last Week Tonight," first made the offer in February, but Thomas never responded. On Monday, Oliver said he would be willing to open up the negotiations again.
"If you want to get in touch and open up the negotiations again, I still have the contract in the drawer in my desk, and I'd be willing to do that," Oliver said while appearing as a guest on Monday's "Late Night with Seth Meyers."
Oliver said he was both disappointed and relieved that Thomas didn't take up his initial offer.
"I felt exactly like you until the offer went out on TV," he said, addressing Meyers' enthusiastic audience. "I was so excited. 'Oh, that was fun. That show went really well. Oh f—, it's about to happen now, isn't it?'"
Oliver joked that the contract was real and that he had conversations with legal experts who assured him that he wasn't breaking any laws by offering to pay Thomas.
His wife was less appreciative of the offer, however.
"And I did feel like if he took the deal that there were going to be some people so angry with me that they were going to kill me. Therefore, my wife wouldn't be on the hook for the money," he joked. "But she didn't take that as the reassuring statement that I hoped. 'Oh, I won't be around for that. Don't worry. It's fine.'"
Despite his mixed feelings about the proposal, the late night host confessed he would do it again.
"Honestly, I'd open it up again," Oliver told Meyers. "As long as he gets out before they're doing the June decisions. I would be willing to open discussions again."
Oliver then made a direct plea to Thomas to accept his offer.
"If you want to get in touch and open up the negotiations again, I still have the contract in the drawer in my desk, and I'd be willing to do that. Again, until one of us dies, and hopefully that will be you," he said flippantly.
Oliver's offer comes amid growing calls for Thomas to recuse himself from cases involving the 2020 election. Thomas' wife, Ginni Thomas, has been a vocal supporter of former President Donald Trump and has promoted false claims about the election being stolen.
Some legal experts have argued that Thomas has a conflict of interest and should recuse himself from any cases related to the election. Thomas has so far declined to do so.
It is unclear whether Thomas will accept Oliver's offer. In the past, Thomas has been critical of Oliver and his show. In 2019, Thomas said that Oliver's show was "not funny" and that he was "not a fan."
However, Oliver's offer has reignited the debate over whether Thomas should recuse himself from cases involving the election. It is a debate that is likely to continue for some time.
Fox News' Alba Cuebas-Fantauzzi contributed to this report.
