Clarence Thomas’s $267,230 R.V. and the Friend Who Financed It

The title historical past paperwork reviewed by The Times present that when the motor coach was bought for $267,230 to the Thomases in 1999, it had solely 93,618 miles on it, comparatively few for a automobile that consultants say can simply log 1,000,000 miles in its lifetime. It got here outfitted with plush leather-based seating, a kitchen, a rest room and a bed room within the again. In addition to its orange flame motif, it had a big Pegasus painted on the again, in keeping with Jason Mang, the step-grandson of the earlier proprietor, Bonnie Owenby.

“It was superluxury, really bougie,” he recalled.

On Nov. 19, 1999, after recognizing the motor coach on the lot of Desert West Coach in Phoenix and placing a maintain on it, Justice Thomas attended a dinner on the conservative Goldwater Institute. In a speech that night time, he mentioned he had by no means yearned to be a federal decide. “Pure and simple, I wanted to be rich,” he mentioned.

Wayne Mullis, the proprietor of the now-defunct Desert West, mentioned in an interview that Justice Thomas by no means mentioned acquiring conventional financing with him, and that “as far as I know, he paid for it.”

Indeed, Justice Thomas would have been hard-pressed to get a mortgage from a standard lender. Banks, and even finance firms specializing in R.V. loans, are significantly reluctant to lend cash on used Prevost Marathons as a result of the personalized options are laborious to worth, in keeping with three main business executives interviewed by The Times.

“As a rule, the majority of buyers are cash buyers — they don’t finance the Prevost, generally,” mentioned Chad Stevens, proprietor of an Arizona-based dealership specializing in high-end motor coaches, whose shoppers embrace celebrities and politicians. “In 1999, you would need a very strong down payment and a strong financial portfolio to finance one. It is a luxury item.”