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Supreme Court Justice CLARENCE THOMAS’ connections outside the courtroom are under scrutiny again.

ProPublica’s Joshua Kaplan, Justin Elliott and Alex Mierjeski are up with a sprawling report revealing the benefits that Thomas has received over many years through his friendship with GOP megadonor HARLAN CROW.

“For more than two decades, Thomas has accepted luxury trips virtually every year from the Dallas businessman without disclosing them, documents and interviews show. A public servant who has a salary of $285,000, he has vacationed on Crow’s superyacht around the globe. He flies on Crow’s Bombardier Global 5000 jet. He has gone with Crow to the Bohemian Grove, the exclusive California all-male retreat, and to Crow’s sprawling ranch in East Texas. And Thomas typically spends about a week every summer at Crow’s private resort in the Adirondacks.

“The extent and frequency of Crow’s apparent gifts to Thomas have no known precedent in the modern history of the U.S. Supreme Court. These trips appeared nowhere on Thomas’ financial disclosures. His failure to report the flights appears to violate a law passed after Watergate that requires justices, judges, members of Congress and federal officials to disclose most gifts, two ethics law experts said.”

And it’s not just Thomas and Crow jetting off alone. “During just one trip in July 2017, Thomas’ fellow guests included executives at Verizon and PricewaterhouseCoopers, major Republican donors and one of the leaders of the American Enterprise Institute, a pro-business conservative think tank, according to records reviewed by ProPublica. The painting of Thomas at Topridge shows him in conversation with LEONARD LEO, the Federalist Society leader regarded as an architect of the Supreme Court’s recent turn to the right.”

Thomas declined comment for the story, but Crow said gave a statement in which he “acknowledged that he’d extended ‘hospitality’ to the Thomases ‘over the years,’ but said that Thomas never asked for any of it and it was ‘no different from the hospitality we have extended to our many other dear friends.’”

Interesting nugget: Josh Gerstein notes that Crow served as a host for the Old Parkland Conference for Black conservatives in Dallas last year, where Thomas first teed off on the Supreme Court’s Dobbs draft decision that was published by our colleagues. Watch the clip

The congressional reaction: Our colleagues Nancy Vu and Daniella Diaz have a roundup of the initial Hill response for Congress Minutes.

‘SOMETHING IS GOING TO GO BOOM’ — International Monetary Fund Managing Director KRISTALINA GEORGIEVA told our colleague Ryan Heath this morning that she is worried “there is simply no way that interest rates would go up so much after being low for so long and there would be no vulnerabilities. Something is going to go boom.”

Georgieva urged Congress to avoid a U.S. debt default at all costs. She also said she is optimistic about China’s new economic leaders, especially Premier LI QIANG — a close ally of President XI JINPING — whom she described as “very approachable” during a recent meeting in Beijing and committed to foreign investment. Read more from Doug Palmer

‘NO’ ON NATO — “U.S. opposes offering Ukraine a road map to Nato membership,” by FT’s Henry Foy in Brussels and Felicia Schwartz in Washington: “The US, Germany and Hungary are resisting efforts from countries such as Poland and the Baltic states to offer Kyiv deeper ties with Nato and clear statements of support for its future membership, four officials involved in the talks told the FT. The divisions were made clear at a meeting of Nato foreign ministers in Brussels this week, with member state officials set to spend the next two months locked in negotiations ahead of a leaders’ summit in Vilnius in July.”

Good Thursday afternoon. Thanks for reading Playbook PM. As you probably noticed, yesterday’s Playbook PM was sent to your inbox twice due to a production error — we apologize for the mixup. Drop me a line at [email protected].

CONGRESS

AIR JORDAN — House Judiciary Chair JIM JORDAN sent a subpoena to former New York County special assistant DA MARK POMERANTZ, requesting him “to appear behind closed doors for a deposition on April 20, according to a copy of the subpoena viewed by POLITICO,” our colleague Jordain Carney reports. Jordain notes that it’s the first subpoena in Jordan’s investigation of Manhattan DA ALVIN BRAGG’s office, which this week delivered an indictment against Trump. “It’s unusual for Congress to subpoena a line prosecutor – and Jordan, in his Thursday letter, alleges that Bragg’s office directed Pomerantz not to cooperate with oversight. Bragg’s office and Pomerantz didn’t immediately respond to questions about that claim.” Read the full letter

FOOD FIGHT — “House G.O.P.’s Plan to Cut Food Stamps Faces a Tough Vote,” by NYT’s Catie Edmondson

2024 WATCH

DeSANTIS DOWNLOAD — “Ron DeSantis’ long-haul strategy against Trump comes into view,” by NBC’s Henry Gomez and Matt Dixon: “Florida Gov. RON DESANTIS’ team is already plotting out a strategy to run against Donald Trump for the long haul. The plan focuses less on making a quick splash in places like Iowa or New Hampshire and more on outlasting the former president in a battle for Republican convention delegates. Even though it’s early and DeSantis isn’t officially a candidate yet, in talks behind the scenes, an expanded map is viewed as one of the keys to victory, three sources close to the governor said.”

The view from DeSantis land: “There have been multiple conversations about delegates and how they are picked in various states across the country,” a DeSantis adviser said. “One thing that we have looked at is that Trump can be beat on the delegate portion of all this. He has never been good at that.”

Related read: “GOP’s DeSantis visits Whitmer’s Michigan, the ‘anti-Florida,’” by AP’s Joey Cappelletti in Lansing, Mich.

JUMPING ON THE TRUMP TRAIN — Florida GOP Rep. BYRON DONALDS formally endorsed Trump today, ABC’s Rachel Scott scoops. “There is only one leader at this time in our nation’s history who can seize this moment and deliver what we need to get us back on track, provide strength and resolve,” Donalds said in a statement announcing his backing.

TRUMP CARDS

UPDATE FROM YESTERDAY — Playbook PM included a CNN story yesterday reporting that several former Trump senior national security officials, including former acting DHS Secretary CHAD WOLF, had testified in front of a grand jury investigating Trump. However, CNN appended the following correction to the report today: “A previous version of this story reported that Chad Wolf had appeared before a federal grand jury. After publication Wolf’s attorney told CNN that Wolf met with Justice Department prosecutors and the FBI after receiving a grand jury subpoena from special counsel Jack Smith but has not yet testified before the grand jury itself.” Read the CNN report … Read yesterday’s Playbook PM

PLAYER PROFILE — “Ex-Tabloid King Poses Threat to Donald Trump in Hush-Money Case,” by WSJ’s Joe Palazzolo and Rebecca Ballhaus: “[MICHAEL] COHEN may be the only witness who can directly connect Mr. Trump to aspects of the alleged accounting fraud. But [DAVID] PECKER could speak to a broader hush-money scheme to suppress articles that threatened Mr. Trump’s presidential candidacy and buttress Mr. Cohen’s claims that Mr. Trump was at the center of all of it, legal experts said.”

THE WHITE HOUSE

GUNS IN AMERICA — “White House accuses GOP of helping Mexican drug cartels by targeting ATF,” by NBC’s Alex Seitz-Wald: “The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, a perennial target of gun rights supporters, risks a funding reduction or even outright elimination as House Republicans look for places to cut spending in government funding negotiations. … White House spokesperson ANDREW BATES told NBC News in a statement that Republicans are trying to thwart Biden’s effort to keep guns out of the hands of violent drug traffickers.”

POLICY CORNER

IMMIGRATION FILES — “Safety Net Barriers Add to Child Poverty in Immigrant Families,” by NYT’s Jason DeParle in Nashville: “Children of immigrants, the fastest-growing group of American youths, have poverty rates more than twice those of other children. That is partly because their families earn less than native workers, but also because they face more barriers to government support. The barriers are largest for children of undocumented immigrants, but families of legal immigrants face obstacles, too. More than 40 percent of the country’s poor children are children of immigrants.”

THE ECONOMY

FED UP — “Latest Fed Decision to Raise Rates Came Down to the Wire; ‘That Was a Rough Weekend,’” by WSJ’s Nick Timiraos: “Rate-setting meetings are usually tightly choreographed and devoid of suspense. The big decisions happen in the week leading up to the gathering and not during the two days of elaborate presentations and discussion around the boardroom table. Fed leaders like to avoid surprises so they can fine-tune their public message. The run-up to their March 21-22 meeting, which was dominated by concerns about the banking system crisis that had erupted two weeks earlier, was the opposite.”

THE LOOKAHEAD — “Bank Failures. High Inflation. Rising Rates. Is the Resilient Jobs Market About to Crack?” by WSJ’s Sarah Chaney Cambon: “The Labor Department will release its March jobs report on Friday, coming on the heels of surprisingly robust job growth in January and February. Broad-based job figures are an important economic gauge but can lag behind other labor-market indicators.”

Related reads: “‘We’re at a tipping point:’ What to expect from the jobs report on Friday,” by CNN’s Alicia Wallace … “The US economy is unwell. April could be a cruel month,” by CNN’s Nicole Goodkind

BEYOND THE BELTWAY

HAPPENING TODAY — “TN House expulsion vote: Republicans seek ouster of 3 Democrats who led gun reform chants,” by the Nashville Tennessean

ANCHORING IN ALASKA — “In Pristine Alaska, an Oil Giant Prepares to Drill for Decades,” by NYT’s Lisa Friedman and Clifford Krauss: “Scientists say nations must stop new oil and gas projects to avoid climate catastrophe. But after the Biden administration greenlit the $8 billion Willow project, ConocoPhillips is racing ahead.”

Related read: “It’s Not Just Willow: Oil and Gas Projects Are Back in a Big Way,” by NYT’s Max Bearak

OPIOID FILES — “‘War on drugs’ deja vu: Fentanyl overdoses spur states to seek tougher laws,” by WaPo’s David Ovalle: “The rash of state bills underscores the political urgency of a drug crisis that has grown more lethal and intractable over time — and perhaps, also, a sense of desperation on the part of legislators and law enforcement officials who have been unable to curb demand, or shut off the spigot of drugs to their communities.”

STRUGGLING SYSTEMS — “Assisted-living homes are rejecting Medicaid and evicting seniors,” by WaPo’s Christopher Rowland: “The evictions highlight the pitfalls of the U.S. long-term care system, which is showing fractures from the pandemic just as a wave of 73 million baby boomers is hitting an age where they are likely to need more day-to-day care. About 4.4 million Americans have some form of long-term care paid for by Medicaid, the state-federal health system for the poor, a patchy safety net that industry representatives say pays facilities too little.”

DOMINO EFFECT — “TikTok’s Next Big Ban Showdown Is in Montana,” by WSJ’s Stu Woo and Georgia Wells: “Some TikTok leaders are concerned that the Montana bill, if passed, could lead to a domino effect in which other states eventually follow suit. … And that, in turn, could give momentum to politicians in Washington pushing for a nationwide ban.”

ANNALS OF INFLUENCE — “As National Parks Visits Surge, Booz Allen Benefits,” by WSJ’s Allison Pohle: “Visitors might assume that, like entrance fees, the reservation charges help pay for improving trails around the park’s Running Eagle Falls or expanding the park’s volunteer program. But a chunk of the money ends up with consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton Inc.”

AMERICA AND THE WORLD

KNOWING ROGER CARSTENS — “America’s Top Hostage Envoy Pursues Freedom for Detained U.S. Citizens in Increasingly Hostile World,” by WSJ’s James Areddy, Aruna Viswanatha and Nancy Youssef: “[ROGER] CARSTENS, 58 years old, is the public face of the U.S. government’s detainee diplomacy, an undertaking that in the past few years received its own office. His ambassadorial position was established by law in 2020, and his team gets involved when the U.S. government officially determines that an American citizen has been ‘unlawfully or wrongfully detained’ by a foreign government.”

DANCE OF THE SUPERPOWERS — “China plans $500 million subsea internet cable to rival US-backed project,” by Reuters’ Joe Brock

THE GLOBAL INFLUENCE GAME — “Saudi, Iran restore ties, say they seek Mideast stability,” by AP’s Malak Harb in Dubai: “Thursday’s announcement also represents another diplomatic victory for the Chinese as Gulf Arab states perceive the United States slowly withdrawing from the wider region.”

PLAYBOOKERS

TRANSITION — Hannah Cooper is now deputy director of federal relations for Maryland Gov. Wes Moore. She most recently was legislative director for Rep. Donald Norcross (D-N.J.).

Send Playbookers tips to [email protected] or text us at 202-556-3307. Playbook couldn’t happen without our editor Mike DeBonis, deputy editor Zack Stanton and producers Setota Hailemariam and Bethany Irvine.

Correction: Yesterday’s Playbook PM misstated Sen. Susan Collins’ leadership role on the Senate Appropriations Committee.