Longtime Hollywood star Rob Lowe baffled Conan O’Brien by admitting he’s friends with a conservative superstar, "studly" Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Appearing on the podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, the West Wing star spoke about his own new podcast. He plans to talk to "people [others might be] surprised I’m friends with."
After telling O’Brien this includes Thomas, the talk show host seemed disbelieving: "Are you guys really close?" Going off O'Brien's apparent shock, the celebrity replied, "See. Look at those eyes. That eye vein popped.... But he’s a guy [Thomas], people go, ‘You know him?'" An incredulous O’Brien still didn't get it: "Wait, you know him?"
Lowe explained:
LOWE: I do know him. I got inducted into the Horatio Alger Society a couple years ago.... It’s a very exclusive, very amazing society that provides scholarships for kids who come to terrible, terrible backgrounds. But they are the best and the brightest in their classes. And the people in it are pretty studly. He’s one of them. That’s how we met. They put the medal on me in the halls of the Supreme Court.
"Wow," O’Brien marveled. Lowe then proceeded to describe what a nice person the conservative Supreme Court Justice is, even helping out the actor’s son:
The reason I bring it up is he’s one of those people who occupies such a perception in people’s minds and he’s like, ‘If you ever need anything, call my number. This is my cell phone." And then my son Matthew was going to law school. So I had some ideas about clerking and things like that. So I call this cell phone and he answers it. And you’re like, "Geeze. Shouldn’t there be, like, a vetting process?" And 45 minutes he’s giving me advice on what my son should do vis-a-vis law school and clerking.
O’BRIEN: You’re kidding.
In 2015, Lowe hammered Barack Obama for not meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but talking to YouTube stars. In a previous article, I explained how the actor has sounded downright conservative in the last few years.
In August of 2014, Lowe hit Obama for foreign policy failings: "Waiting to hear POTUS explain the disaster the world has become."
On November 10, 2014, he appeared on Meet the Press Pass and insisted, "Kennedy's 'Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country'...today I think that's – our discussion is the inverse. People are asking, 'What can our government do for us?'"
On May 17, 2011, the former West Wing star explained how he saw the difference between conservatism and liberalism: "Liberal politics is built on empathy. I think conservative politics, from my opinion is built on...logic."
A transcript of the June 1 exchange is below:
Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
6/1/2020
47 minutes into the podcast
CONAN O’BRIEN: Who would people be surprised that you’re friends with?
ROB LOWE: Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.
CONAN O’BRIEN: Are you guys really close?
LOWE: Told you. See. Look at those eyes. That eye vein popped when you said that.
O’BRIEN: Blood came out.
LOWE: But he’s a guy, people go, "You know him?"
O’BRIEN: Wait, you do know him?
LOWE: I do know him. I do know him. I got inducted into the Horatio Alger Society a couple years ago. Something else to google. It’s a very exclusive, very amazing society that provides scholarships for kids who come to terrible,
terrible backgrounds. But they are the best and the brightest in their classes. And the people in it are pretty studly. He’s one of them. So, that’s how we met. They put the medal on me in the halls of the Supreme Court.O’BRIEN: You’re kidding.
LOWE: Which is the only private ceremony allowed in the Supreme Court.
O’BRIEN: So you were in a private chamber in the Supreme Court and who put the medal on you?
LOWE: Justice Thomas.
O’BRIEN: Wow.
...
50 minutes in
LOWE: The reason I bring it up is he’s one of those people who occupies such a perception in people’s minds and he’s like, ‘If you ever need anything, call my number. This is my cell phone." And then my son Matthew was going to law school. So I had some ideas about clerking and things like that. So I call this cell phone and he answers it. And you’re like, "Geeze. Shouldn’t there be, like, a vetting process?" And 45 minutes he’s giving me advice on what my son should do vis-a-vis law school and clerking.
