President Biden has proposed a few changes to the Supreme Court. He want to enact term limits, overturn the recent travesty ruling which grants a president blanket immunity, and enforce a code of ethics by which justices may be accountable for their misdeeds. Of course, the odds of such reforms getting passed is nigh on impossible, but as a publicity stunt, it's pretty good. Unfortunately, Biden left off the most important item.
He must propose a new rule where any future SCOTUS nominees must first be unanimously approved by all remaining justices.
I outlined this in my previous blog post as item #3 in my list of reforms to strengthen democracy, and it's no accident that I made it the third-highest priority. It is essential that our SCOTUS justices be as impartial as possible. Yet our current method of confirmation ensures that justices are approved specifically for their biases rather than their lack thereof. This is pure insanity! To preserve our democracy, and ensure the court's integrity, future justices must appeal to both left and right-wing interests. That means any new justice will have to be moderate. Eventually, nine moderates will dominate the court, and that's as it should be. Cases should be judged on their merits and legality, nothing else. Nominees must be judged on their qualifications rather than their partisan leanings. What's more, the Senate, in its confirmation process, is denied any opportunity to stack the court with biased partisans seeking to legislate from the bench. Good!
I get why Biden would suggest his wish list of reforms. It grabs people's attention and gets them talking. That's a positive thing. But leaving off the most important reform of all is ludicrous, even if the odds of passing it are nil.
As usual, I write up a blog post because something needs to be said, and I see nobody else saying it. Well, it needed saying. Let's remove political biases from our Supreme Court once and for all!
Eric
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