Former Vice President Joe Biden revealed his specific plan to reform the Supreme Court once he takes office — and after the likely confirmation of President Donald Trump’s third appointment to the court, Judge Amy Coney Barrett.
In a preview of an interview that will air on CBS News’ 60 Minutes this week, Norah O’Donnell asked Biden about his plans for the court, and used the term “court-packing” as shorthand for an expansion of the number of justices.
“If elected, what I will do is I’ll put together a national commission of, a bipartisan commission of scholars, constitutional scholars, Democrats, Republicans, liberal, conservative,” Biden said. “And I will ask them to, over 180 days, to 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.”
“And it’s not about court-packing,” he added. “There’s a number of other things that constitutional scholars have 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, whether, there’s a number of alternatives that go well beyond packing,” Biden said.
“This is a live ball,”
“Oh it is a live ball. No, it is a live ball,” Biden agreed. “We’re going to have to do that. And you’re going to find there’s a lot of conservative constitutional scholars are saying it as well.”
He concluded by saying “The last thing we need to do is to turn the Supreme Court into a just a political football, whoever has the most votes gets whatever they want. Presidents come and go. Supreme Court justices stay for generations.”
The question of Supreme Court reform has ballooned in importance since the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the nomination of Judge Barrett, who would shift the balance of the court to a 6-3 conservative majority. Biden has resisted talking about reform plans, in favor of focusing on Republicans’ effort to rush through a confirmation while voting in the election is in progress.
Watch the clip above via CBS.