USA US President Biden wants to reform the Supreme Court

US President Joe Biden wants to reform the Supreme Court of the United States and is presenting his plans today. The Democrat will call for term limits for Supreme Court judges and an enforceable code of ethics, according to a US government representative. In addition, Biden wants to propose a constitutional amendment that clarifies that former presidents are not protected from prosecution for offenses committed while in office.

Biden's proposals would have to be approved by Parliament, which is considered unlikely due to the majority in the US Congress. There are particularly high hurdles for a constitutional amendment.

According to the government representative, Biden believes the reforms are necessary "in light of this crisis of confidence in America's democratic institutions". In recent years, the court has overturned important precedents: for example, it has restricted women's right to self-determination and granted the president extensive immunity for criminal offenses during his term of office. Ethics scandals have cast doubt on the fairness and independence of the Supreme Court.

The three changes sought in detail:

1. term limits for judges

The nine judges of the Supreme Court are appointed for life. Their selection is a hard-fought political process. Former President Donald Trump was able to place three judges on the Supreme Court during his term of office (2017 to 2021), which is why six of the nine judges are currently considered conservative.

Biden wants to propose a system whereby the president appoints a judge every two years who will then serve for eighteen years. This should help to ensure that the composition of the court changes with a certain regularity, it was said. Such a system would also reduce the likelihood of "a single presidency exerting undue influence on future generations".

2. binding code of conduct

Last year, reports of expensive gifts to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas sparked an ethics debate. The Supreme Court judges then agreed to a code of conduct, the enforceability of which was questionable.

Biden wants Congress to adopt binding rules of conduct. These should stipulate, for example, that judges must disclose gifts and refrain from political activities in public. Judges should also be obliged to withdraw from cases in which conflicts of interest arise for them or their partners.

3. constitutional amendment on immunity

The Constitution does not explicitly grant immunity to presidents, even during their time in office. However, the Department of Justice has traditionally taken the view that presidents cannot be indicted, at least during their time in the White House. A few weeks ago, Trump scored a historic victory before the Supreme Court: The court ruled that he enjoys broad protection from prosecution for his actions while president.

Biden now wants to put a constitutional amendment to the vote that clarifies that "no president is above the law", meaning that former presidents are not protected from prosecution for crimes committed while in office.

Trump has already criticized the plans

Trump already criticized the plans when US media first reported on them last week. "The Democrats are trying to interfere in the presidential election and destroy our judicial system by attacking their political opponent, me, and our honorable Supreme Court," he wrote on his online platform Truth Social.

Trump is the Republican presidential candidate and wants to replace Biden in the White House after the election on November 5. Biden's deputy Kamala Harris is expected to enter the race as the Democratic candidate after the incumbent withdrew from the race for the presidency just over a week ago.

SDA