Biden’s Bold Move to Tame the Conservative Supreme Court

In a striking op-ed for the Washington Post, President Joe Biden announced sweeping reforms for the Supreme Court, aiming to rein in the unchecked power of its conservative supermajority. His proposals, which were further detailed in a speech at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library, include implementing 18-year term limits for justices, a binding code of ethics, and a constitutional amendment to reverse the controversial July 1 decision granting presidents “absolute immunity” from criminal prosecution for official acts.

“What’s happening now is not normal and undermines the public’s confidence in the court’s decisions, including those impacting personal freedoms,” Biden wrote. “That’s why—in the face of increasing threats to America’s democratic institutions—I am calling for three bold reforms to restore trust and accountability to the court and our democracy.”

Biden’s plan proposes appointing a new justice every two years to serve an 18-year term, a move designed to prevent any one party or president from gaining disproportionate control over the court. He also emphasized the need for justices to disclose gifts, avoid political activities, and recuse themselves from cases with potential conflicts of interest. The “No One Is Above the Law Amendment” aims to ensure that no president can claim immunity for crimes committed while in office.

Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee, backed these reforms, highlighting the crisis of confidence plaguing the Supreme Court due to recent ethics scandals and controversial decisions.

Pro-democracy groups welcomed Biden’s proposals as a crucial step toward holding the Supreme Court accountable. A coalition of national advocacy groups, including Indivisible, MoveOn, and People for the American Way, praised the endorsement. Sarah Lipton-Lubet, president of Take Back the Court Action Fund, called it a “massive sea change in the fight for court reform.”

As has been reported extensively for Mother Jones and in his book *Minority Rule*, the Supreme Court’s conservative supermajority has significantly contributed to the democratic crisis facing the United States. Five of the six conservative justices were appointed by Republican presidents who lost the popular vote and were confirmed by senators representing a minority of Americans. This supermajority has taken steps to make the country less democratic, including gutting the Voting Rights Act, upholding gerrymandering, and allowing dark money in politics. They have made decisions that go against public opinion on issues like abortion and gun control, and have shielded former president Donald Trump from legal challenges related to the insurrection.

Moreover, Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have accepted gifts and trips from top GOP donors without recusing themselves from related cases, further eroding public trust. Ginni Thomas, Clarence Thomas’s wife, even sent texts urging the overturning of the 2020 election, yet the justice did not recuse himself from January 6-related cases.

Despite the urgent need for reform, Biden’s proposals face significant obstacles. Republicans in Congress are likely to block any measures, and the constitutional amendment would require overwhelming support from Congress and the states. No major amendments have passed in the last fifty years.

Nevertheless, Biden’s call for Supreme Court reform could energize Democratic voters, much like Mitch McConnell’s 2016 maneuver to block Obama’s Supreme Court nominee galvanized Republicans. It also sets the stage for Vice President Harris to prioritize court reform if she wins the presidency with a Democratic majority in Congress.

As Biden stated at the LBJ Library, “the court’s being used to weaponize an extreme and unchecked agenda.” Now, the question is whether these reforms can gain the traction needed to restore balance and trust in one of America’s most vital institutions.