US President Joe Biden called for the reform of Supreme Court terms limits and presidential immunity on Monday as part of a three-part plan to Congress ahead of the upcoming 2024 presidential election in November.
The plan, which had been laid out in an op-ed published by the Washington Post, reveals a strategy to overhaul the Supreme Court’s landmark decision that provided the former presidents with immunity from prosecution by passing a constitutional amendment. The plan also includes doing away with lifetime appointments to the court. He calls for Congress to pass legislation to allow the sitting president to appoint a justice every two years to spend an 18-year term on the court. He also wants to pass legislation to establish a code of ethics for the court that would require disclosure of gifts, prohibit political activity, and recuse themselves from any cases that include any conflict or financial interest, including their spouses.
However, Biden’s proposed constitutional amendment is expected to meet resistance. With the House under Republican control, while Democrats control the Senate, the proposal would require a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate or a constitutional convention requested by 34 states, requiring 38 state legislatures to approve it. The last time this occurred took place in 1992 for the 27th Amendment, which allows Congress to pass a bill changing the pay for members of the House and Senate, but the change would not take effect until after the next November elections are held for Congress.
“Term limits would help ensure that the court’s membership changes with some regularity. That would make timing for court nominations more predictable and less arbitrary. It would reduce the chance that any single presidency radically alters the makeup of the court for generations to come,” President Biden wrote.
A poll captured by the Associated Press in 2022 indicated that Americans support limiting how long justices should remain on the court. The polls found that 67% of Americans, which include Democrats with 82% and Republicans with 57% are supportive of a term limit.
“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. No One,” Biden added.
Throughout his presidency, Biden has been vocal about the current court and how their actions have deviated from constitutional standards. “I have great respect for our institutions and separations of powers. 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.”