“Calls to expand the Court are based on the faulty premise that the Court is supposed to operate, like some federal commissions do, with a “balance” of members from the two major political parties.”
– Erin Hawley
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Independent Women’s Law Center (IWLC) opposes the recommendation of the Biden administration’s Commission on the United States Supreme Court to impose term limits on Supreme Court justices but applauds the Commission’s decision not to recommend Court-packing. Last week, the commission issued its report, finding support for imposing term limits on the justices but noting “profound disagreement” over adding justices to the court.
IWLC submitted public comments to the Commission and drove 498 citizens to submit their own comments urging the Commission to keep its hands off the Court.
Erin Hawley, senior legal fellow at Independent Women’s Law Center, issued the following statement: “Calls to expand the Court are based on the faulty premise that the Court is supposed to operate, like some federal commissions do, with a “balance” of members from the two major political parties. The Court is not supposed to behave as a political, policy-making body where two sides work together to forge compromise. In a democratic society, the role of the Court is to apply the law as written, not to cut deals or strike compromises.”
Jennifer Braceras, director of Independent Women’s Law Center, added, “The Supreme Court is not broken, and politicians should resist the urge to ‘fix’ it. Adding justices to the Court to advance political objectives would undermine the independence of the judiciary and threaten the checks and balances that are the cornerstones of our system of governance. Term limits, too, would impair the Court’s statute by subjecting the Court to constant personnel changes and entwining the appointments in the presidential election cycle.”
Read more about Court-packing and the threat to judicial independence HERE.
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Independent Women’s Law Center advocates for equal opportunity, individual liberty, and respect for the American constitutional order.
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