Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell ripped his Democratic colleagues’ latest efforts to pack the courts Thursday; saying the media would broadcast “wall-to-wall outrage” if Republicans had tried to add new Supreme Court judges under Donald Trump.
“If Republicans had introduced a bill to add four Supreme Court seats for the last president to fill, there would have been weeks of wall-to-wall outrage on every newspaper and cable TV channel nonstop,” said McConnell.
Sen. Mitch McConnell: "If Republicans had introduced a bill to add four Supreme Court seats for the last president to fill, there would have been weeks of wall-to-wall outrage on every newspaper and cable TV channel nonstop." https://t.co/gtamAgH7l6 pic.twitter.com/yKgUXhY8Rr
— The Hill (@thehill) April 15, 2021
Democrats in the House and Senate are poised to introduce legislation that would add four justices to the United States Supreme Court, bringing the total from nine judges to thirteen.
“Congressional Democrats will introduce legislation Thursday to expand the Supreme Court from nine to 13 justices, joining progressive activists pushing to transform the court,” reports NBC News.
“The move intensifies a high-stakes ideological fight over the future of the court after President Donald Trump and Republicans appointed three conservative justices in four years, including one who was confirmed days before the 2020 election,” adds the outlet.
The movement is being led by Sen. Ed Markey and Congressman Jerry Nadler.
“This bill marks a new era where Democrats finally stop conceding the Supreme Court to Republicans,” said Brian Fallon, a former Senate Democratic leadership aide
“Our task now is to build a grassroots movement that puts pressure on every Democrat in Congress to support this legislation because it is the only way to restore balance to the court and protect our democracy,” he said.
While not specifically enshrined in the US Constitution, the number of Supreme Court Justices has remained nine since 1869.
Read the full report at NBC News.
DEM SENATOR: Joe Biden May Have to Pack the Courts to ‘Rebalance Our Federal Judiciary’
Democratic Senator Chris Coons doubled-down on his party’s threat to “pack the courts” if Republicans confirm Judge Amy Coney Barrett before the election; saying the move might be necessary to “rebalance our federal judiciary.”
“If Barrett is confirmed and Democrats win back the Senate would you vote to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court if it came up for a vote? Is that something you would be in favor of?” Tapper asked.
“Well Jake, like Joe Biden, I’m not a fan of expanding the court,” Coons replied. “We have a few weeks here to see whether there are four Republicans who will step back from this precipice.”
“It is the Republican majority that’s responsible for racing forward with this extreme unqualified nominee, unqualified because of her extreme judicial philosophy and that is who should be bearing the brunt at the ballot box in this election,” Coons continued. “We need to focus on that and then if we happen to be in the fact pattern where we have a President Biden we’ll have to look at what the right steps are to rebalance our federal judiciary.”
Read the full report at the Daily Caller.
BIDEN on COURT PACKING: If I Answer That Question, It Will Be ‘The Headline In Every One of Your Papers’
Former Vice President Joe Biden stumped in Phoenix Thursday alongside Kamala Harris; once-again refusing to say if he plans on packing the Supreme Court with additional justices should he win the White House.
“Some of you have covered national politics before. The rest of the world is laughing at us. It’s an embarrassment. It’s got to stop. You’ll know my opinion on court packing when the election is over. It’s a great question, and I don’t blame you for asking,” said Biden.
“The moment I answer that question, the headline in every one of your papers will be about that!” he added.
Joe Biden:
"You'll know my opinion on court packing when the election is over." pic.twitter.com/uYEXZHHAp1
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) October 8, 2020
Watch Biden’s comments above.