Some Democrats in Congress have revealed a proposal to increase the number of justices on the Supreme Court from nine to 13, according to NPR. The legislation was introduced yesterday in the House of Representatives and the Senate, according to The Washington Post.
The legislation is referred to as the Judiciary Act of 2021. It is co-sponsored by Representatives Jerrold Nadler, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee, as well as New York’s Mondaire Jones, Georgia’s Hank Johnson, and Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey.
Congressional Republicans are opposed to the plan. They are accusing Democrats of “court packing.”
“Some people will say we’re packing the court,” Nadler said yesterday. “We’re not packing it. We’re unpacking it. Senator McConnell and the Republicans packed the court over the last couple of years.”
The bill’s supporters point to the conservatives now being the 6-3 majority in the court. Democrats are also still angry Senate Republicans would not even consider President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland in 2016.
At the time, Republicans blamed it on the fact it was an election year. However, last year they pushed through Trump’s nomination of Amy Coney Barrett during an election season.
President Biden has signed an executive order to set up a bipartisan commission to research making changes in the Supreme Court. As part of the study, the commission will also look at the court’s size and the justices’ lifetime appointments.
House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi does not plan to introduce the legislation on the House floor. However, she said the idea “should be considered.”




