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Biden calls for supreme court reforms including 18-year justice term limits (www.theguardian.com)

submitted 3 months ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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President also says presidential immunity for crimes should be removed and ethics rules for justices should be stricter

Joe Biden has called for a series of reforms to the US Supreme Court, including the introduction of term limits for justices and a constitutional amendment to remove immunity for crimes committed by a president while in office.

In an op-ed published on Monday morning, the president said justices should be limited to a maximum of 18 years’ service on the court rather than the current lifetime appointment, and also said ethics rules should be strengthened to regulate justices’ behavior.

The call for reform comes after the supreme court ruled in early July that former presidents have some degree of immunity from prosecution, a decision that served as a major victory for Donald Trump amid his legal travails.

“This nation was founded on a simple yet profound principle: No one is above the law. Not the president of the United States. Not a justice on the Supreme Court of the United States,” Biden wrote.

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[–] Cethin 2 points 3 months ago (2 children)

That's assuming it isn't gamed. If your time is running out and your party is losing power soon, you can step down and let the president of your choice appoint a new justice.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I imagine they'd have to flush out all the exact scenarios, the biggest problem being the existing justices. I'd imagine you'd have to do something like this, assuming the bill took place immediately.

Thomas - Joined the court in 1991, almost 33 years ago - Out immediately, serving 15 years longer than normal, Biden chooses replacement.
Roberts - Joined the court in 2005, almost 19 years ago - Out in 2026, serving 21 years, 3 longer than normal, Harris chooses replacement.
Alito - Joined the court in 2006, almost 18 years ago - Out in 2028, serving 22 years, 4 longer than normal, Harris chooses replacement.
Sotomayor - Joined the court in 2009, almost 15 years ago - Out in 2030, serving 21 years, 3 longer than normal, Harris chooses replacement.
Kagan - Joined the court in 2010, almost 14 years ago - Out in 2032, serving 22 years, 4 longer than normal, Harris chooses replacement.
Gorsuch - Joined the court in 2017, over 7 years ago - Out in 2034, serving 17 years, 1 year shorter than normal, next president chooses replacement.
Kavanaugh - Joined the court in 2018, almost 6 years ago - Out in 2036, serving 18 years, which is the new normal, next president chooses replacement.
Barrett - Joined the court in 2020, almost 4 years ago - Out in 2038, serving 18 years, which is the normal, next president chooses replacement.
Jackson - Joined the court in 2022, over 2 years ago - Out in 2040, serving 18 years, which is the new normal, next president chooses replacement.

Honestly, looking at it written out it seems really good. Obviously the older court members are the ones that will have stuck around longer than the 18 years. Under the schedule, Gorsuch is the only one who doesn't get the full 18 years, which is fitting since he is the only pick for the court that is truly illegitimate.

I think if there was a death or someone had to step down, you'd want the current president to appoint someone to fill the remainder of their term, rather than starting the clock all over again at 18 years. That would prevent retiring early to game the system.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

Yeah - you'd basically set up an 18-year cycle of appointments every 2 years with each seat up once per cycle.

I'd be okay with locking-in the number of seats on the Court at that point as well. Adding or removing seats would really screw with the system, and 9 seats with 18 year terms really does work out brilliantly mathematically.

Only once since the Civil War has a President been elected to replace a President of the same party (Reagan - > HW Bush), so keeping a 2-term President from being able to appoint a majority would probably result in a fairly balanced Court.

Also limiting them to 1 term offers the same political immunity a lifetime appointment does.

The more I think about it the more I like it.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago

If a Senator, Congresspe son, or President leaves office early, the person appointed or elected to fill the vacancy finishes out the term. The Supreme Court would be similar.

Maybe have a rule similar to the President that if a Justice serves less than X years of a predecessor's term they can be reappoonted, so that if someone dies or steps down a year before their term is up it doesn't screw the person who fills the vacancy.