For all of Clarence Thomas’s corruption he was right about one thing: he could be making more money if he quit the court and went into private practice. So the justices are not there for the paychecks or the perks. They are there for the power and prestige.
I think John Roberts really is a person who cares what history books will say about him even if he pretends to be above that kind of thing. The question is if he has the courage to actually do something about it, and the answers looking more and more like a “no.”
