Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said Sept. 1 that she is open to an enforceable code of conduct being imposed on the justices.
“A binding code of ethics is pretty standard for judges,” she said. “And so I guess the question is, ‘Is the Supreme Court any different?’ And I guess I have not seen a persuasive reason as to why the court is different than the other courts.”
Jackson said in principle she supports having an enforceable code but wasn’t endorsing any specific plan.
“I am considering supporting it as a general matter. I’m not going to get into commenting on particular policy proposals. But from my perspective, I don’t have any problem with an enforceable code.”
Democrat lawmakers in Congress say the voluntary code is not enough and many favor legislation known as the proposed Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act (SCERT) that would force compliance.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse’s (D-R.I.) bill would create a system allowing members of the public to file complaints against justices for violating a code of conduct or for engaging “in conduct that undermines the integrity” of the court. The bill would also allow lower court judges to sit in judgment of Supreme Court justices in ethics disputes.
The measure was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee but is now stalled in the U.S. Senate.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in June that the bill “is not about improving the court—this is about undermining the court.”
He called the bill “an unconstitutional overreach” by Democrats aimed at undermining “a court they don’t like.”
Democrats have been ratcheting up pressure on the Supreme Court since 2022 when the court overturned Roe v. Wade and returned the regulation of abortion to the states. They have also expressed concern about conservative Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito accepting gifts from Republican donors and not initially disclosing them.
Republicans counter that Democrats object to the current court because it has been making decisions they disagree with. Republicans also say there is no evidence Thomas or Alito have shown favor in court to anyone who has given them gifts and that having generous friends is not against the law.
Americans remain divided along partisan lines on the court’s performance, with Republicans tending to favor the court’s activities and Democrats overwhelmingly opposing them.
The poll was conducted soon after President Joe Biden announced proposals to reform the top court, including a constitutional amendment that would impose 18-year term limits for justices, who currently enjoy lifetime tenure, along with ethics rules requiring disclosure of gifts and a ban on political activity.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party’s nominee for president, has endorsed the plan.
Former President Donald Trump, the GOP nominee for president, has criticized Democrats’ push to regulate the Supreme Court.
“The Democrats are attempting to interfere in the Presidential Election, and destroy our Justice System, by attacking their Political Opponent, ME, and our Honorable Supreme Court. We have to fight for our Fair and Independent Courts, and protect our Country,” he wrote in a July 16 post on Truth Social.
