Georgia congressmen split party lines on Supreme Court reform

(The Center Square) – U.S. congressmen in Georgia are split on the need for judicial reform.

Democratic Rep. Hank Johnson has proposed his own legislation to reform the Supreme Court, while also supporting President Joe Biden’s proposed Supreme Court constitutional amendment.

Johnson sponsored two different bills in 2023 to add additional codes and rules to the Supreme Court judges.

On Monday, Biden published an op-ed in the Washington Post calling for term limits on Supreme Court justices, establishing a mandatory ethics code, and addressing presidential immunity.

Johnson said on social media that his legislation is “necessary to restore trust & faith in our judiciary.”

“I applaud POTUS’ acknowledgement of the need for Supreme Court reform,” Johnson said in a statement. “I look forward to working with White House to enact meaningful court reform now, such as my Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act, the TERM Act and other reforms necessary to restore trust and faith in our judiciary. No one is above the law, including the president or justices of the Supreme Court.”

Republican Rep. Andrew Clyde pushed back against Biden’s proposal, which Vice President Kamala Harris has also endorsed.

“Joe Biden and Kamala Harris want to destroy the U.S. Supreme Court because they disagree with recent landmark rulings,” Clyde said on social media. “Dangerous. Delusional. Downright unconstitutional.”

He added an additional disagreement with the idea that term limits are appropriate for the nation’s highest court.

“Joe Biden has been in politics for over five decades. Yet he wants to impose 18-year term limits on Supreme Court justices? Give me a break. This nonsense is dead on arrival,” Clyde said.

Democratic Rep. Rick Larsen endorsed Johnson’s legislation.

“I support the following legislation to enact these proposals & begin to repair the people’s faith & trust in the judicial branch,” Larsen said on social media.