Democrats have renewed calls to add four more seats to the Supreme Court as a way of diluting its conservative majority.
On Thursday, Massachusetts Senator Edward J. Markey and Georgia Representative Hank Johnson, a member of the Judiciary Subcommittee, held a news conference to call for an expansion of the court and highlight the Judiciary Act, which would create a 13-justice Supreme Court.
Markey, the lead author of the legislation, told reporters in Washington, D.C., that the bill is intended to overcome the court's swing to "extremist" far-right politics.
"The court's recent decisions on presidential immunity, Chevron deference and overturning Roe v. Wade laid bare that a far-right, extremist majority has been fully captured and plunged the court into a crisis of confidence and legitimacy," he said.
The Supreme Court's ruling on Chevron deference makes it harder for federal agencies to act on environmental policy and other issues.
"Because we can no longer trust the current Supreme Court to uphold the words engraved on the outside of the Supreme Court—'Equal Justice Under the Law'—we must fight to return balance and legitimacy to this institution and expand the court," Markey continued.
With a Republican majority in the House of Representatives, it is unlikely the bill will pass. Some Democrats may also be reluctant to expand the Supreme Court, as it could create an even larger conservative majority on the court.
Newsweek contacted the White House and the office of Republican House Majority Leader Steve Scalise for comment via email outside normal business hours.
Representative Hank Johnson was keen to mention that expanding the Supreme Court is legal and that the number of judges is not mandated in the Constitution.
"It's easy to take for granted that the number of justices on the Supreme Court must be nine, but in fact this number is not set in the Constitution and has changed seven times over the course of the country's history," the congressman said.
"Thirteen justices would mean one justice per circuit court of appeals, consistent with how the number of justices was originally determined," he continued.
Democratic co-sponsors of the Judiciary Act include Senator Elizabeth Warren and Representatives Jerry Nadler, Cori Bush and Adam Schiff.
The bill has strong backing from Planned Parenthood and other pro-abortion rights groups that want to reinstate the federal right to abortion, which ended in 2022 with the Dobbs decision.
"Planned Parenthood Federation of America is proud to support the Judiciary Act because our futures depend on federal courts that reflect this country and the ideals of the majority," said Alexis McGill Johnson, the president and CEO of Planned Parenthood Action Fund.
Separately, President Joe Biden is reportedly preparing to endorse significant changes to the Supreme Court.
According to a recent Washington Post report, Biden is poised to support major Supreme Court reforms, such as establishing term limits for justices and implementing an enforceable ethics code.
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About the writer
Sean O'Driscoll is a Newsweek Senior Crime and Courts Reporter based in Ireland. His focus is reporting on U.S. law. ... Read more
