Is Supreme Court Reform Near?
Here’s what Biden originally proposed in the Washington Post.
First is the “No One Is Above the Law Amendment”, a proposed constitutional amendement that would deny former presidents immunity from crimes committed during their time in office. The fact that we are even talking about amending our Constitution is a testimony to how corrupt the Supreme Court under Chief Justice John Roberts has become. We also need to face the reality that conservatives will fight this proposal tooth-and-nail.
Second, term limits for Supreme Court justices. According to Biden’s plan, the president will appoint one justice every two-years, who would then serve 18 years on the Court. Imagine a world where Clarence Thomas was forced into retirement 15 years ago, whether he wanted to or not. Imagine a world where he got moved into retirement 15 years ago, whether he wanted to or not.
Finally, Biden also proposes a binding and enforceable ethics code for Supreme Court justices, who would be required to disclose gifts, refrain from public political activity, and recuse themselves from cases in which they or their spouses (*cough* Ginny Thomas *cough*) have financial or other conflicts of interest.
While it’s not expanding the Court–which we at Rewire News Group have been calling for for years–these proposals are an important step in the right direction toward addressing the conservative legal movement’s complete ideological capture of the Court. Politically, a lot needs to happen to make these ideas a reality.
Importantly, Vice President Kamala Harris endorsed the reforms almost immediately after they were announced. This means that the court reform needle has moved, and it’s less than two weeks until the Democratic National Convention.
