A post on X claims that Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has announced that he will retire Jan. 21.

BREAKING: Clarence Thomas to retire from Supreme Court on January 21. pic.twitter.com/fqeq1bFf4M

— RT America (@RTNewsAmerica) November 29, 2024

Verdict: False

Thomas has not announced his retirement as of press time, and the outlet reporting this is known for fake news.

Fact Check:

With President-Elect Donald Trump soon to take office, Justice Clarence Thomas, currently the longest tenured member on the bench, has faced calls to retire or recuse himself from duty. The 76-year-old has faced accusations of abuse of power, and leading Democrats have called for his resignation. Prominent Republicans are also suggesting he retire so that President-Elect Trump would be guaranteed a chance to replace him.

A post on X claims that Justice Thomas has announced that he will retire from the Supreme Court on January 21, which would be one day after Trump’s impending inauguration. This is false, however.

A Google search would have turned up current results for such a major announcement, however it turns up empty. Justice Thomas does not have social media accounts where he could announce this, and the official Supreme Court website does not make any announcement of his impending retirement as of December 3. (RELATED: FACT CHECK: Is Joy Reid Moving To London Following Donald Trump’s Victory?)

The account that posted the fake claim, RT America, is known for parody and fake news and states so in it’s X bio. It is made to look like an offshoot of the Russian state-controlled media outlet ‘RT,’ which shuttered it’s American newsroom in 2022. Check Your Fact has debunked claims made by them in the past.