Biden criticizes ‘extreme’ Supreme Court for seeking reform

Joe Biden has criticized the Supreme Court’s “extremist views” as he proposes sweeping reforms that include removing life positions.

The proposals come after the current judiciary-run court issued a series of major rulings, including curtailing the constitutional right to abortion and allowing presidents to be impeached for “official acts”.

Mr Biden has proposed an 18-year term for judges and an enforceable code of conduct to “restore trust and accountability”.

However, he faces the difficult task of securing Congressional approval given Republican control of the House of Representatives.

Democrats hope that pushing for reform can help galvanize voters ahead of the November election.

At the same time, it has been rife with allegations of legal violations, especially after reporters investigated Justice Clarence Thomas for not reporting the gift.

The court’s nine justices serve for life under current rules, and new appointments are made by the sitting president when a member retires or dies. Donald Trump has appointed three judges in his four years in office.

In a speech on Monday in Austin, Texas, Mr Biden said the “extremist views” introduced by the court “undermined the rule of law and established principles of human rights and protections”.

The president added that the court is “engaged in an ethical crisis”, referring to the conflict of interest among the judges.

“I am sure that we need these changes in order to restore trust in the court, to maintain the system of checks and balances that are important in our democracy,” he said.

The speech marked the 60th anniversary of the Human Rights Act.

In an article published earlier in the day in the Washington Post, Mr Biden said “what is happening now is unusual”.

“It undermines public confidence in court decisions, including those that affect personal liberties,” he wrote. “Now we stand in violation of the law.”

Mr. Biden suggested that a new justice be appointed to the court every two years, who will serve for 18 years. Reform advocates have previously suggested that such a system would help remove politics from the courtroom.

The president also wants Congress to create a new ethics code that would force judges to disclose gifts and avoid overtly political activities.

Although the court issued a code of ethics for the first time in its history last year, it has no way to implement it.

Finally, Mr. Biden hopes to pass an amendment to the US constitution that will reverse the decision of July 1 in which the Supreme Court said that Donald Trump and other former presidents are immune from criminal prosecution.

In a controversial decision, the court’s judges found that the president does not have “legal acts” but is not immune from “illegal acts”.

In his article, Mr Biden said the proposed amendment – which he called “No One is Above the Law” – would “make it clear that there is no immunity for crimes committed by a former president while in office”.

“I agree with the belief of our founders that the power of the president is limited, not absolute,” he wrote. “We are a nation of laws – not of kings or dictators”.

Republicans have pushed back on efforts to overhaul the court.

In a statement on Monday, the Trump campaign accused President Biden and vice president – and Democratic nominee – Kamala Harris of working to “undermine the legitimacy” of the court.

“It’s all part of Kamala’s plan to fill the Supreme Court with leftist, hard-line justices who will issue decisions based on politics, now the law,” Trump said in a statement.

On Sunday, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that the Democrats did not make an effort to do that when the most fanatical group of judges “put out their favorite ideas.”

Earlier this month, Trump also described efforts to reform the court as an “illegal” and “unconstitutional” attack on a “sacred” institution.

“Democrats are trying to interfere in our presidential election, and destroy our judicial system, by attacking their political opponents, me and our honorable supreme court,” he wrote.

“We must fight for our fair and independent courts, and protect our country.”

Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson called the proposal “dead on arrival” in the House. In response, Mr Biden said “Mr Johnson’s imagination is dead on arrival”.

However, Professor Daniel Urman, who teaches law and public policy at Northeastern University in Boston, described the proposal as “too little, too late”.

“It’s rare for lame-duck presidents to get major legislative victories, and, anyway, the Republicans, happy with the current Supreme Court, control the House,” Prof Urman told the BBC.

“The interesting question is what [Vice President] Harris will do this issue during the campaign,” he added. “Court reform is very popular, especially term limits.”