This week, Vice President Kamala Harris said that she would co-propose President Joe Biden’s plan to “reform” the Supreme Court. This came after Biden announced that he would not run for president and endorsed Harris.
In a statement, Harris said that Congress should pass “important reforms” surrounding the Supreme Court, including imposing term limits on the justices.
“In the course of our Nation’s history, trust in the Supreme Court of the United States has been critical to achieving equal justice under law. President Biden and I strongly believe that the American people must have confidence in the Supreme Court. Yet today, there is a clear crisis of confidence facing the Supreme Court as its fairness has been called into question after numerous ethics scandals and decision after decision overturning long-standing precedent,” Harris said.
“That’s why President Biden and I are calling on Congress to pass important reforms – from imposing term limits for Justices’ active service, to requiring Justices to comply with binding ethics rules just like every other federal judge. And finally, in our democracy, no one should be above the law. So we must also ensure that no former President has immunity for crimes committed while in the White House,” Harris said, seeming to allude to former President Donald Trump, the Republican nominee for president this year.
“These popular reforms will help to restore confidence in the Court, strengthen our democracy, and ensure no one else is above the law,” Harris concluded.
Harris on Supreme Court reforms: "These popular reforms will help to restore confidence in the Court, strengthen our democracy, and ensure no one is above the law." pic.twitter.com/AT21CmAJKe
— Priscilla Alvarez (@priscialva) July 29, 2024
In recent years, the Supreme Court has handed down decisions protecting unborn life and protecting the Second Amendment, which was riled up Democrats.
President Biden penned an op-ed in The Washington Post this week where he claimed that the current Supreme Court is “dangerous and extreme.”
“Scandals involving several justices have caused the public to question the court’s fairness and independence, which are essential to faithfully carrying out its mission of equal justice under the law,” he wrote.
“I served as a U.S. senator for 36 years, including as chairman and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee. I have overseen more Supreme Court nominations as senator, vice president and president than anyone living today. I have great respect for our institutions and the separation of powers,” he said. “What is happening now is not normal, and it undermines the public’s confidence in the court’s decisions, including those impacting personal freedoms. We now stand in a breach.”
We can and must prevent the abuse of presidential power.
— Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 29, 2024
We can and must restore the public’s faith in the Supreme Court.
We can and must strengthen the guardrails of democracy. pic.twitter.com/GudporgyCM
Join the conversation as a VIP Member