After it was announced on Friday that the Biden administration has launched a commission to explore increasing the size of the Supreme Court, Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked the White House why Biden could be into the idea now, even though he spoke against it some years ago.
“President Biden once said in 1983, he said he though that court packing was a bonehead idea when FDR tried it. So why ask a panel now to go and see if it is a good idea?” asked Doocy.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told Doocy that while looking into court packing was one of the things the commission would be looking into, that would not be the entirety of their research.
“The panel’s being asked to take a number of steps, including the pros and cons on exactly that issue,” said Psaki. “But they will also be looking at the Court’s rule in the constitutional system, the length of service and turnover of justices on the Court, the membership and size of the Court, and the Court’s case selection rules and practices.”
The Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States will include constitutional, legal, political science, and history scholars in its makeup, and will report its findings 180 days after its first meeting.
“…The makeup of this commission which was vital for the President, there are progressives on the court, there are conservatives on the court. People will present different opinions and different points of view and then they’ll have a report at the end of 180 days,” Psaki continued.
During President Joe Biden’s 2020 campaign, he had repetitively deflected questioning about court packing . It wasn’t until an October interview with 60 Minutes that Biden said he would be considering a bipartisan commission to explore judicial reform, not just court packing.
Calls for the expansion of the Supreme Court grew last year after the passing of Justice Ruth Badger Ginsburg, when former President Donald Trump quickly appointed Justice Amy Coney Barrett, sparking nationwide protests.
Proponents for the expansion of the Supreme Court are looking to create a partisan balance in the Supreme Court following Trumps three conservative leaning Justice nominations.
