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By Adeola Adeosun
Weekend Night Editor
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In a significant push for judicial reform, Senators Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Joe Manchin (I-W.Va.) have introduced a joint resolution proposing a constitutional amendment that would establish 18-year term limits for Supreme Court Justices while maintaining nine seats on the Court.
A June Newsweek poll found broad public support for such reform, with 58 percent of eligible voters favoring term limits and only 13 percent opposing them.
"Taking action to restore public trust in our nation's most powerful Court is as urgent as it is necessary," said Senator Welch. "Setting term limits for Supreme Court Justices will cut down on political gamesmanship, and is a commonsense reform supported by a majority of Americans."
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The amendment's transition plan would protect sitting justices' lifetime appointments while creating a systematic approach for future nominations. New 18-year terms would begin every two years, with incoming justices serving the remainder of the next available term after current justices retire.
Senator Manchin emphasized the broken nature of the current system. "The current lifetime appointment structure is broken and fuels polarizing confirmation battles and political posturing that has eroded public confidence in the highest court in our land," he said.
Newsweek reached out to both senators' offices via email and the Supreme Court on Saturday for comment.
The proposal aligns with President Joe Biden's vision for Supreme Court reform, which he outlined in a Washington Post opinion piece in July. Biden noted that the United States stands alone among major constitutional democracies in granting lifetime appointments to its highest court's justices.
Biden's broader reform agenda includes establishing an enforceable ethics code for the Court and eliminating broad immunity for presidents and other top officials. These proposals come in response to recent controversies surrounding undisclosed gifts to justices and debates over presidential accountability.
However, some lawmakers argue that term limits could be implemented without a constitutional amendment. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), speaking on CNN's "State of the Union" in July, suggested that both term limits and court expansion could be achieved through legislative action. "We're working on changes to the Supreme Court," Warren told host Jake Tapper. "It can be term limits; it could be adding the number of justices — things we can do without having to have a constitutional amendment."
The debate over court reform has intensified following controversial rulings on abortion rights, presidential immunity, and federal agency powers. Democrats have introduced alternative proposals, including the Judiciary Act, sponsored by Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) and Representative Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), which would expand the court to thirteen justices.
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The current system has led to uneven appointments across presidential administrations.
During his first term, President- elect Donald Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices, while former President Barack Obama appointed two during his two terms, and President Biden has appointed one. Justice Clarence Thomas, the longest-serving current justice, has been on the bench for nearly 33 years.
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