The Supreme Court Needs Term Limits
Petition to Congress:
We urge you to set Supreme Court term limits by passing the TERM Act. Regularizing Supreme Court appointments every two years will ensure a Supreme Court that is more representative of the nation, reflecting the choices of recently elected Presidents and Senators. Term limits for Supreme Court justices are an essential tool to restoring a constitutional balance to the three branches of the federal government.
The Supreme Court is broken.
Unpopular, extremist rulings in Roe v Wade and other cases.
Three far-right justices appointed by Donald Trump.
New ethics scandals revealed every week about Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, and now Neil Gorsuch. It’s clear the Supreme Court is not working in the interests of the American people.1
Setting term limits for Justices would help fix this corrupt Court. With the current lifetime appointments, justices have been free to push their own agendas for decades with no accountability. Congress has the power to end these lifetime terms and make the court the balanced, accountable institution it was meant to be.2
The TERM Act would set Supreme Court appointments at 18 years, and would ensure that each newly elected President is able to appoint two Justices. A new Justice would be added every other year, and since 9 (Justices) x 2 (years) = 18, it’d take 18 years to reach the end of the cycle, hence 18-year terms. With each President able to select two Justices, appointments would become predictable events, not embarrassing partisan spectacles.3
Setting Supreme Court term limits would be perfectly constitutional, and could be done by Congress without a complicated amendment process. Polls show that over two-thirds of all Americans support term limits for Justices. 4
The Supreme Court has already gutted abortion protections, and is set to rule on a number of other critical issues this year, including student loans, fundamental labor rights, and more. Given the 6-3 right-wing majority, these rulings will almost certainly be disastrous.
Lifetime appointments have put us in a position where our democracy and basic rights depend on the health of a few Justices who have been serving for decades. It’s time for Congress to pass Supreme Court term limits and restore legitimacy and independence to the nation's highest court.
Sources:
- In These Times, “The Supreme Court Needs Term Limits. Clarence Thomas Is Proof,” April 19, 2023.
- Rep Hank Johnson, “Rep. Johnson Introduces Supreme Court Justice Term Limit Measure to Restore Balance, Legitimacy for SCOTUS,” July 26, 2022.
- Fix the Court, “Term Limits,” July 6, 2022.
- Axios, “Two-thirds of Americans support Supreme Court term limits, poll finds,” July 25, 2022.