In response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s conservative majority, a growing number of progressive politicians have advocated for packing the court with new members in an effort to even out the ideological balance.
U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI), however, has recently advocated a new plan to create vacancies on the nation’s highest court.
“Why should the court be exempted?”
According to Breitbart, she declared that the time has come for the court to implement term limits.
Hirono expressed support for the idea during an MSNBC appearance on Monday.
When host Hallie Jackson asked her whether she would support term limits, she replied: “Pretty much I would because, as I say, who gets a lifetime appointment or job security for anything? Why should the court be exempted? That’s been my view for a while. We should have a debate on it.”
The Hawaii Democrats previously expressed the perceived need for “court reform,” including an increase in the number of justices serving on the bench.
“It definitely means applying ethical standards,” Hirono added.
“We see what’s happening in Texas already”
Of course, the U.S. Constitution provides for lifetime appointments in which federal judges “shall hold their offices during good behavior.”
For that reason, any attempt to impose term limits would require a constitutional amendment. For her part, Hirono did not offer any insight into how such an amendment might be passed.
The Supreme Court has received fierce criticism from the left following a 5-4 vote last week that upheld a Texas law banning most abortions in the state.
Hirono also weighed in on this controversy, explaining that congressional Democrats were working on a plan to override state-level abortion restrictions.
“We’re going to do everything we can to codify Roe v. Wade at the federal level but also at the state level because it’s the state legislators that are very busy, passing hundreds and hundreds of abortion limiting laws across the country and that is why people need to vote,” she insisted. “They need to have legislators who are going to impose these kinds of draconian laws on women across the country, creating chaos, fear, chilling effect. We see what’s happening in Texas already.”
The post ‘We should have a debate’: Dem Sen. Hirono calls for Supreme Court term limits first appeared on Conservative Institute.
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