Biden: There’s ‘a Number of Alternatives’ to Court-Packing — SCOTUS Isn’t a ‘Political Football’

Thursday, CBS News aired a preview of 2020 Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden’s interview with the network’s Norah O’Donnell set to air Sunday on “60 Minutes.”

Biden told O’Donnell that if elected, he intends to put together a “bipartisan commission” to look into how to “reform the court system because it’s getting out of whack.” This comes as President Donald Trump has nominated a Supreme Court justice in the final year of his first term, a move many Democrats have criticized and threatened to retaliate by packing the court.

“If elected, I’ll put together a bipartisan commission of scholars, constitutional scholars, Democrats, Republicans, liberal, conservative, and I will ask them to over 180 days come back to me with recommendations as to how to reform the court system because it’s getting out of whack the way in which it’s being handled,” Biden advised. “It’s not about court-packing. There’s a number of things that constitutional scholars are debated, and I’d look to see what recommendations that commission might make.”

“So, you’re telling us you’re going to study this issue about whether to pack the court?” O’Donnell asked.

“No,” Biden replied. “There’s a number of alternatives that go well beyond packing.”

He continued, “You’re going to find there’s a lot of conservative constitutional scholars that are saying it as well. The last thing we need to do is turn the Supreme Court into just a political football. Whoever has the most votes get whatever they want. Presidents come and go. Supreme Court justices stay for generations.”

Follow Trent Baker on Twitter @MagnifiTrent

COMMENTS

Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.