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Democrats will introduce a bill to expand the Supreme Court

2021-04-15T12:44:05.784Z


"This bill marks a new era in which Democrats finally stop granting the Supreme Court to Republicans," says a former Democratic aide in the Senate. The size of the court, which has fluctuated since it was established in 1789, has remained at nine since 1869.


By Sahil Kapur - NBC News

WASHINGTON - Congressional Democrats will introduce a bill on Thursday to expand the Supreme Court from 9 to 13 justices, joining progressive activists pushing to transform the highest judicial body in the country.

The move intensifies a high-stakes ideological fight over the future of the court after former President Donald Trump and Republicans appointed three conservative justices in four years, including one that was confirmed days before the 2020 election.

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The Democratic bill is led by Senator Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.

It is co-sponsored by Representatives Hank Johnson, for Georgia, and Mondaire Jones, for New York.

The Supreme Court can be expanded by an act of Congress, but the legislation is highly unlikely to become law in the near future given the slim majority of Democrats, who include dozens of lawmakers who disagree with the idea.

President Joe Biden has said he is "not a fan" of expanding the tribunal.

But it represents a background against Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Kentucky, for denying a 2016 vote during President Barack Obama's tenure to fill a vacancy, citing the proximity of an election.

However, Amy Coney Barrett, Trump's candidate, was confirmed before the presidential elections last November.

Anger has gripped the Democratic Party and the new momentum indicates that it has not dissipated in an era in which the party controls the White House and both houses of Congress.

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The legislators, who intend to announce the introduction of the bill outside the Supreme Court building, will be joined by progressive activists Aaron Belkin, who leads Take Back the Court;

Chris Kang, Co-Founder and Senior Advisor, Demand Justice;

and Meagan Hatcher-Mays of Indivisible, according to a notice.

All three groups advocate adding judges.

"This bill marks a new era in which Democrats finally stop granting the Supreme Court to Republicans," said Brian Fallon, a former Democratic aide in the Senate and co-founder of Demand Justice, who described the court as "broken and in need of reform ".

"Our task now is to build a grassroots movement that will pressure all Democrats in Congress to support this legislation because it is the only way to restore balance in the Supreme Court and protect our democracy."

Last week, Biden announced the formation of a commission of liberals and conservatives to study the structure of the Supreme Court, including the number of judges and the length of their service.

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The size of the Supreme Court, which has fluctuated since it was established in 1789, has remained at nine since 1869.

McConnell has strongly warned Democrats not to add seats to the court, arguing that "there is nothing about the structure or operation of the judiciary that requires 'study.'

The politician cited comments from Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who died in September, and liberal Judge Stephen Breyer, who expressed skepticism about the expansion of the judicial body.

"President Biden campaigned on the promise of lowering the temperature and uniting a divided nation

,

"

McConnell recalled in a statement last week.

"If he really meant it, he would stop giving oxygen to a dangerous and old-fashioned idea and face the supporters who tout it," he added.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2021-04-15

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