Democrats renew push to expand Supreme Court

Democrats Call for Supreme Court Packing

Last week, Democrats renewed their push to pack the Supreme Court with liberal justices following a series of decisions that they viewed as unfavorable. The court’s conservative majority ruled against race-based admissions processes at Harvard and the University of North Carolina, sided with a Christian graphic designer who refused to work on same-sex weddings, and struck down President Biden’s student loan forgiveness program.

The decisions sparked outrage among Democrats and liberals, with many calling for an expansion of the court to dilute the conservative majority. Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) argued that adding more justices wouldn’t be extreme, given the court’s opinions. In a tweet, Schiff stated, “Expanding the size of the Supreme Court isn’t extreme or unprecedented — but the opinions of this Court certainly are.”

Expanding the size of the Supreme Court isn’t extreme or unprecedented — but the opinions of this Court certainly are.

— Adam Schiff (@AdamSchiff) June 30, 2023

Schiff continued his call to pack the court in an email to supporters, but he referred to it as “unpacking” the court. He advocated for expanding the number of justices, implementing term limits, and enacting a code of ethics. Schiff emphasized the need to address the imbalance caused by former President Trump and Senator Mitch McConnell’s appointments.

Representative Ayanna Pressley (D-MA) also expressed support for court packing, stating that “everything should be on the table” to counter the court’s rollback of civil and human rights. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) called for checking the court’s power to prevent an undemocratic expansion of authority.

Even some liberal academics joined the call to pack the court. In an opinion article for Newsweek, David Faris, an associate professor of political science, argued that court expansion is necessary to preserve democracy and prevent the Supreme Court from upending American public life.

However, despite the push from Democrats, a majority of Americans do not support adding justices to the bench. According to a survey conducted by the Heartland Institute and Rasmussen Reports, 55% of voters oppose expanding the Supreme Court to 13 justices, while 64% of Democrats are in favor of the idea.

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