Republicans Reintroduce Amendment to Block Supreme Court Packing

The American flag flies in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Feb 13, 2016. Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Several Republican senators confirmed they will reintroduce a bill to add a constitutional amendment to stop the “packing,” or adding justices, of the Supreme Court.

A press release from Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) office criticized calls from some Democrats to expand the Supreme Court in response to former President Donald Trump’s nomination of three justices.

“As a candidate, President Joe Biden promised to unify America, and even said he was ‘not a fan’ of packing the Supreme Court, a radical proposal he once referred to as a ‘bonehead idea’ when he served in the Senate. If he is sincere about healing our country and protecting our institutions, he will support this effort to protect the Supreme Court,” Rubio said in the release.

Other Republican senators have taken issue with the proposal, which was floated by top Democrats during the 2020 election season.

“Last Congress we proposed this amendment which would maintain the number of seats on the Supreme Court at nine,” said Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), who joined the GOP effort to introduce the measure on Monday. “It remains imperative that we continue to resist efforts to pack the Supreme Court and treat it as if it is one of the elected branches of government. Our society is only as strong as its institutions, and I hope my colleagues will join us in our effort to ensure the integrity and independence of the Supreme Court.”

The Epoch Times has reached out to the White House for comment.

During the campaign, Biden did not definitively answer whether he would support expanding the high court. But later, Biden told an Ohio news station that he believes the issue is a distraction.

“I’m not a fan of court-packing, but I don’t want to get off on that whole issue. I want to keep focused,” then-candidate Biden told WKRC. “The president would like nothing better than to fight about whether or not I would in fact pack the court or not pack the court.”

Other than Rubio and Romney, Sens. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Pat Toomey (R-Pa.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Rob Portman (R-Ohio), and John Cornyn (R-Texas) opposed the measure.

The calls to expand the court came after Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death last fall, which led to the confirmation of now-Justice Amy Coney Barrett.