CNN's Jeffrey Toobin rips Justice Clarence Thomas in first op-ed since return from sexual misconduct scandal

CNN legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin ripped Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas in his first op-ed since returning to the liberal network following a prolonged leave of absence for sexual misconduct.

In the piece, Toobin was critical of Thomas' "originalist" view on interpreting the Constitution, his conservative views on various "controversial" topics and attempted to spotlight his differences with the other conservative justices, seemingly to make his views seem more extreme.  "In the waning days of Donald Trump’s presidency, Amy Coney Barrett won confirmation to the Supreme Court and Clarence Thomas received an equally consequential promotion – to Chief Justice of the United States," Toobin wrote. "Not officially, of course. John G. Roberts, Jr., retains the title … But the Chief Justice has just one essential power that differentiates his role from that of the other Justices. The Chief has the right to assign the court’s opinions when he is in the majority. When the Chief Justice is in the minority, though, the assignment power goes to the senior Associate Justice who is in the majority."