Tag: Court Packing

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Court Reform and Judicial Self-Restraint

George Thomas

Like Jeff Tulis, I admire Adam White’s work. I appreciate both his skepticism of court-packing and his case for self-restraint. And I certainly appreciate Greg Weiner’s point that political actors should not push their constitutional power to the limit. That institutional restraint can be a virtue. Though, if anything, Congress often seems too restrained.  But two points are in order.  First, White is right to worry about whether court-packing and terms limits might cause the Court to be more politicized. In the current environment, he points to some important problems with 18 year term limits for the justices oriented around … Continue reading Court Reform and Judicial Self-Restraint

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Christopher Scalia on Court-Packing

Greg Weiner

Christopher Scalia has an excellent piece at USA Today debunking the specious grounds of the Democratic attempt to expand the Supreme Court to 13 justices. The grounds are so implausible as to raise another question: Why bother with the pretense? That is not a rhetorical question, at least not entirely. Expanding or contracting the Court is one of the legitimate tools at Congress’ disposal for constraining judicial behavior of which it disapproves. For a variety of reasons, I would oppose expanding the Court. But I would endorse being open about the reasons for proposing it. The Court’s power is swollen … Continue reading Christopher Scalia on Court-Packing

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Expanding the Court

Greg Weiner

UPDATE: I stand by the concerns about adjusting the size of the Court, but I suspect I was hasty in criticizing the six-month deadline. The membership of the Commission is excellent, and I wish it well. I’m leaving the post in place below. President Biden has announced a 180-day commission that will study reforms of the Supreme Court, including expanding its membership and limiting justices’ terms. There may be good reasons for some of these. The roadblock that conservative justices present to progressive priorities right now is not among them. Consequently, the most revealing and disturbing aspect of the Biden … Continue reading Expanding the Court

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The History and Legitimacy of Court Expansion

thomasmkeck

Is court expansion a legitimate political move? As guest author Thomas Keck explains “proposed alterations in the size of the Supreme Court, like other unorthodox innovations in our governing institutions, are a recurring feature of moments of crisis for U.S. democracy.” In this article, Keck outlines the history of so-called court packing in the U.S. and its relevancy for today. Continue reading The History and Legitimacy of Court Expansion