(Jacob Bruns, Headline USA) Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, reintroduced a constitutional amendment to prevent court-packing by permanently cementing the Supreme Court at nine justices, his campaign website reported.
The amendment, which Cruz previously introduced in 2021 as Democrats threatened to pack the Supreme Court in order to get their way, would have to be approved in Congress before going to the various states for ratification.
It comes as radical leftists—led by Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., who is seeking to replace Sen. Dianne Feinstein—have recently renewed those calls, complaining that a conservative majority on the court is unfair to them.
Unlike Cruz, leftists are hoping to achieve this goal through executive fiat if possible, openly flouting the U.S. Constitution and 250 years of precedent.
I strongly favor enlarging the Supreme Court to 13 Justices. It's not "packing" the Court but unpacking it, without violating the Constitution by trying to remove any of those already confirmed for life. @RepAdamSchiff is right, as usual. And, btw, he'd make a superb U.S. Senator https://t.co/XfJFX7E8fv
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) March 2, 2023
Cruz’s legislation is particularly relevant in the wake of President Joe Biden’s controversial Court-Packing Commission. But even the commission remained skeptical—at least in its initial report—about the idea of adding justices to effect a particular political outcome, while being more open to the idea of 18-year terms for Supreme Court justices instead of lifetime appointments
Cruz noted that the power-play that Democrats have publicly talked about enacting would undermine respect for the law itself in America.
“The Democrats’ answer to a Supreme Court that is dedicated to upholding the rule of law and the Constitution is to pack it with liberals who will rule the way they want,” he said. “The Supreme Court should be independent, not inflated by every new administration.”
Cruz’s amendment is co-sponsored by a plethora of Republican senators, including Roger Marshall, R-Kansas; Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn.; Mike Lee, R-Utah; Tom Cotton, R-Ark.; Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Josh Hawley, R-Mo.; Thom Tillis, R-N.C.; John Kennedy, R-La.; Cindy Hyde–Smith, R-Miss.; Mike Braun, R-Ind.; and Todd Young, R-Ind.
Hawley noted that, since “the left has been desperate to pack the court to promote their radical agenda,” it falls to Republicans to “ensure that we stay true to the court’s founding principles” rather than rigging the system to benefit a particular party.
Cotton added that “the progressive left will do anything to gain power, including packing and expanding the Supreme Court with judges that share their radical ideology.”
