Posted on 09/25/2020 8:11:23 PM PDT by raccoonradio
Massachusetts Congressman Joe Kennedy III has announced his intention to file legislation next week that would introduce term limits for all future U.S. Supreme Court Justices.
According to Congressman Kennedy's office, the bill would establish 18-year term limits on any Supreme Court Justices approved after its passage. After their 18-year terms, justices would then be allowed to continue their service on lower courts.
Kennedy's bill would then create a regular appointment process to allow every president to nominate a new justice to he Supreme Court during each odd year, guaranteeing each president the opportunity to nominate two justices per four-year term.
Lifetime appointments to the highest court in our land undermine our democratic process and erode progress in our nation, said Rep. Kennedy III. In recent days, Donald Trump and Senate Republicans have once again exploited the Supreme Court in their anti-democratic power grabs. If we believe in the promise of this nation and our march toward a more perfect union, we must enact term limits on our Supreme Court justices.
Introduced with Virginia Congressman Don Beyer and California Congressman Ro Khanna, this will be the first time the notion of Supreme Court term limits has been proposed as a bill, rather than a constitutional amendment. For many Americans, the Supreme Court is a distant, secretive, unelected body that can make drastic changes in their lives without any accountability, said Rep. Beyer. The dramatic politicization of the Court in recent years has greatly undermined the conception of the Court as a group of dispassionate, apolitical jurists, and made the argument for lifetime tenure increasingly obsolete."
Rep. Kennedy's office said the bill is endorsed by Fix the Court, and will be introduced in the United States House of Representatives on Tuesday September 29.
This might actually gain traction with the state legislatures. But first we need to set this standard for Congress. After x number of terms or years, they are gone.
Howie Carr calls him the runt of the litter of the runt of the litter
Thats pretty pitiful.
MA Congressman Marty Meehan talked about only serving just a few terms...
Wiki: “Meehan successfully ran for the House in 1992 on a platform of reform, including a commitment to pushing through term limits for members of the House. As part of that platform, Meehan made a pledge not to serve more than four terms”
He served...seven.
Left to become Chancellor of Univ of MA.
You say you’ll change the constitution
Well, you know...
You say you’ll change the constitution
Well, you know...
A statute cannot do this - it would take a Constitutional amendment. Nothing in the article of course points this out. The Constitution grants them a lifetime appointment - they can be removed only by impeachment.
This is meaningless just to generate headlines and false narratives. The rationale in the article is just plain stupid.
Like Democrat judges ruling Trump isn't permitted to block immigration from certain countries because he's Trump? Like Democrat judges (and Roberts) ruling that the Trump administration isn't permitted to put a question on the census about whether the person is a US citizen - something that has been asked at various times in the past? Like judges ruling Trump isn't permitted to undo an Obama executive order? Insane politicized rulings like that?
How about starting term limits on Congress first?
JoJo
Would a justice appointed under this law have to bring suit to have it declared unconstitutional?
Term limits for the court requires a constitutional amendment. Good luck with that
“...term limiting the Supreme Court requires a Constitutional amendment and limiting Congress does not.”
It’s all about erasing the about to occur conservative majority, with an assumption of a Biden victory.
The plan lets Biden appoint two in his first term. They don’t care about the term limits, that just allows them a justification to implement the two per term rule.
If you had only the term limits you would not get the extra Biden appointees, they do not want that.
Any changes like this only would only apply to judges admitted after the adoption of the new amendment.
Yes. I wonder if any member of the main stream media will have the guts to ask Kennedy about setting term limits to members of Congress before setting term limits to justices.
I think he is trying to avoid the constitution by saying the justices can serve a lower court to serve out the rest of their lifetime appointment.
Terms of appointment for Federal Judges is fixed by law, and could theoretically be changed. Of course the President’s signature is required on any bill unless there is a 2/3 supermajority in both houses of Congress that will vote to override a veto. This is a political stunt intended for the leftwing base. I’m not losing sleep.
Should term limit the Supreme Court Justices (12 years), Senators (12 years), and Representatives (8 years).
Democrats: "Term limits for thee, but not for me."
The way I like to think of it is he was in the Senate longer than John and Robert were alive.
A bill, even if passed and signed by the President, simply cannot do this. The Constitution makes it very clear that all federal judges are appointed FOR LIFE. You want to change that - OK, fine, but do it the only legal way by amending Article 3 of the Constitution.
Besides, putting this bill into the hopper the day before Trump nominates a replacement for uber-liberal RBG smacks just a bit too much like opportunistic posturing, combined with a rush to push something through without due consideration because of (somewhat) popular opinion, even for a lame duck, scumbag member of the Kennedy clan.
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