General
Biden’s Proposed Supreme Court Reforms
More from our inbox: Why We Must End Solitary ConfinementTable Tennis, Anyone?A Winning Campaign Issue: Limits on Interest RatesCredit…Tierney L. Cross for The New York TimesTo the Editor: Re “The Election Is Crucial to the Future of the Supreme …
More from our inbox:
- Why We Must End Solitary Confinement
- Table Tennis, Anyone?
- A Winning Campaign Issue: Limits on Interest Rates
Credit…Tierney L. Cross for The New York Times
To the Editor:
Re “The Election Is Crucial to the Future of the Supreme Court,” by Erwin Chemerinsky (Opinion guest essay, July 31):
Regarding this essay supporting President Biden’s effort to reform the Supreme Court, as well as the current Democratic push in this same direction, does anyone seriously believe that this would be an issue at all if the Democrats were satisfied with the Supreme Court decisions?
The only reason it is an issue is that they don’t like the recent results from that court, and that is the very reason that Supreme Court reform is a bad idea: It is 100 percent politically motivated.
The movement would have a lot more credibility if it wasn’t arising immediately on the heels of recent Supreme Court decisions that the Democrats don’t like, such as expanding the scope of presidential immunity, overturning the Chevron doctrine and especially overturning Roe v. Wade.
Peter E. Meltzer
Wynnewood, Pa.
To the Editor:
While I often agree with Erwin Chemerinsky, I differ here on two important points.
First, he argues that a constitutional amendment is required to impose term limits. As explained in a detailed report by the respected Brennan Center for Justice, implementing 18-year active terms for justices by congressional statute “is consistent with the Constitution’s text and structure” and “with the ways in which Congress has long regulated the Court, including the existing system of senior judges.” Numerous leading constitutional scholars have long agreed with this analysis.
Second, you cannot and should not separate policy reforms from elections. President Biden’s announcement of critical reforms to address the flagrant unethical behavior and extreme abuses of the current court majority elevates the Supreme Court as a critical voting issue, as it should be for our democracy.
