Biden urges reforms to limit Supreme Court powers and presidential immunity
In a speech recorded at the Lyndon B. Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, President Joe Biden raised the urgent need for changes in the structures of the U.S. Supreme Court and the country's constitution.
President Joe Biden called on Monday for changes in the U.S. Supreme Court and the Constitution that would limit the powers of the nation's highest office.
Biden explained that the reforms would limit presidential immunity and introduce term limits for Supreme Court justices. They would also establish mandatory ethical rules for judges, including financial disclosures and conflict-of-interest prevention.
In his opinion, Congress should pass a law under which the sitting president would appoint a judge every two years who would serve 18 years on the Supreme Court.
- We need these reforms to restore trust in the courts, preserve the system of checks and balances that are vital to our democracy - Biden emphasized.
Biden calls for changes
- This nation was founded on the principle there are no kings in America, each of us is equal before the law. Just imagine what a president could do, trampling civil rights and liberties, given such immunity. The court is being used to weaponize an extreme and unchecked agenda - Biden assessed.
In addition to term limits, Biden called on Congress to impose the exact enforceable ethical requirements on the Supreme Court that other federal judges are subject to concerning receiving gifts, political activities, and financial transactions.
NBC News predicts that passing the relevant laws in Congress is unlikely. It would require the consent of Republicans, who hold the majority in the House of Representatives. Democrats in the Senate presented a Supreme Court reform bill last year. Republicans blocked these plans.
