Democrats are renewing their calls to pack the Supreme Court with an instant liberal majority once they retake power. Rep. Seth Moulton (D., Mass.), who is facing a complaint over an alleged assault of a reporter, demanded the packing of the Court due to its decision to allow President Donald Trump to rescind Temporary Protected Status (TPS). Other members have joined the effort, citing the reversal of immigration decisions as the reason for eviscerating one of the most important institutions in our country.
Moulton is running for the Senate and has been seeking to reinforce his credentials as a far-left member after being attacked for objecting to the lack of tolerance in his party. This effort of realignment included publicly “sheltering” an undocumented person in his congressional office.
Now, like other Democrats seeking higher office, such as former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Moulton is offering up the Supreme Court to the most radical elements of his party.
I previously wrote on the 6-3 decision in Mullin v. Doe, allowing Trump to remove TPS from certain Haitian and Syrian illegal immigrants. That is the same discretion that President Joe Biden used to allow over a million such individuals to enter the country “temporarily” years ago. In the case of the Haitians, they received the TPS designation in 2010 after a devastating earthquake — 15 years ago on a temporary basis.
Before addressing the call to pack the Court over such a decision, it is worth noting that this was not, in my view, a particularly close case if you believe in following the text of such laws. Section 1254a(b)(5)(A) provides that ā[t]here is no judicial review of any determination of the [Secretary of Homeland Security] with respect to the designation, or termination or extension of a designation, of a foreign state.ā
The three dissenting liberal justices, and these members, chose to dismiss that language. The majority of justices did not.
The dissenting justices sounded more like legislators in objecting to the lifting of the status quo, citing their own views of the merits of such decisions. It is a glimpse into what a packed court would likely look like if these Democratic members are successful.
Moulton wrote on X that “Democrats need to reform the court to preserve our rights and protect TPS families.ā
Rep. Yvette Clarke (D., N.Y.) joined Moulton adding that the court packing is designed to force the reversal of opinions that she and the other Democrats disagree with:Ā āItās clear now that this legislative body must seize back the power that our increasingly unequal branches have stolen, and that must start with action to protect the hundreds of thousands of TPS holders whose lives depend upon it.ā
Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) also went public to reaffirm that Democrats are āabsolutelyā going to proceed with packing the Court because I think what the Supreme Court has done yesterday is, again, rubber stamp a mass deportation agenda.”
The resolution itself is ripped from the campaign rhetoric on the rise of fascism, accusing the Court of “enabling authoritarian efforts.” The irony is lost on the members that the very signature of authoritarianism is to gut courts to force the outcomes that you demand.
It also ignores that this Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled against this President on major cases, limited his authority, and, as a result, has been attacked by the President in furious public statements.
Nevertheless, various figures from Kamala Harris to Pete Buttigieg to Elizabeth Warren supported the packing of the Court.
James Carville declared, āIf the Democrats win the presidency and both houses of Congress, I think on day one, they shouldĀ expand the Supreme CourtĀ to 13. Fā it. Eat our dust. Donāt run on it. Donāt talk about it. Just do it.ā
This Nike School ofĀ Constitutional LawĀ is catching on with a wide array of pundits and professors. Just do it.
Years ago, Harvard professor Michael Klarman laid out a radical agenda to change the system to guarantee Republicans āwill never win another election.ā However, he warned that āthe Supreme Court could strike down everything I just described.ā Therefore, the court must be packed in advance to allow these changes to occur.
Former Obama Attorney General Eric Holder hasĀ put packingĀ the Supreme Court front and center, explaining, ā[Weāre] talking about the acquisition and the use of power if there is a Democratic trifecta in 2028.ā
At base is a fundamental misunderstanding of the role of the Court. Sen.Ā Elizabeth WarrenĀ (D-Mass.) not only renewed her previous callĀ to pack the courtĀ but said the court was illegitimate for rendering decisions against āwidely held public opinion.ā Former Rep.Ā Eric SwalwellĀ (D-Calif.) said the court ādefies the will of the people.ā Reporter John HaltiwangerĀ insistedĀ that āthe court is clearly not representative of the U.S. public. Itās supposed to be the peopleās court.ā
In reality, the court was never meant to be that. It was meant to be the Constitutionās court, designed to stand against everyone and everything except the Constitution. In a system designed to protect the minority, the court (like the Constitution) is counter-majoritarian in much of what it does.
With the Supreme Court removed as a barrier to the leftās radical agenda, Democrats could indeed fulfill the objectives laid out by figures like Klarman to ensure they never lose power again.
That will make the 2028 election the most consequential election for our constitutional history in decades. Citizens will vote not only on the next president but also on the future of a core institution that has brought stability and moderation to our political system for 250 years.
That is a bum excuse. If the Democrats take power, they can simply change immigration law however they like. Court packing is only necessary to change constitutional decisions.
So what? That is legitimate. So is impeaching and removing the Republicans on it. Same is arresting and criminally charge them for crimes that committed (such as tax fraud and bribery for Thomas).
The Rs spend decades campaigning on installing radicals on the court. But Turley only complains when Ds want to do the same.
Do you know how stupid you sound?
āItās clear now that this legislative body must seize back the power . . .” (Rep Clarke, et al)
The Founders, in their brilliant design called “Separation of Powers,” gave you a means to do that properly: change the law. In case you skipped civics that day, you are the *legislative* not the judicial branch.
In its lust for total power, what the Left wants, the communists call “policy courts and judges” — a judiciary that rubber stamps their policies.
Sam,
It is clear of the way the Founders meant the Republic to be ran.
And it is clear today’s Democrat party is seeking to undermine the Republic. We see it by their words and would be actions. They are not even bothering to hide it. “Just do it!” to secure their absolute power over everyone.
Amazing X is showing Citizens Vigilante concurrent to these Communists attempting an overthrow of OUR Constitution. Weāre now seeing the evidence COVID was engineered, timely released perhaps just in time to overthrow an effective leader in an attempt to maintain the leftwing Cabalās grasp on power. Itās almost as though the Judiciary has been compromised, FBI compromised, and the DOJ has been compromised and they are now promoting the idea that when the People have been subjected to a long line of crazy, take care of it.
Another day, another instance of the modern left openly saying they will destroy our country for good this time if we are stupid enough to hand them power, or if they can cheat sufficiently, or if they can play the long game for long enough.
Modern blue voters that aren’t snot-nosed brats are the kind of asleep that necessitates checking for a pulse. Maher, Fetterman, and the Professor appear to be quite literally the only three showing any signs of life.
Why did he wait so long? There were people who would have found it useful in 300 A.D.
Dear Mr. Turley, my own mother was a democrat through and through and taught my older sister to be the same. Abortion as well as the incessant bullying and name calling by the democrats turned me away from them back in the 70’s. (We see the name calling and bullying here, on this site each day by them) Democrats only have one talking point: hatred of Mr. Trump. Can someone here state any type of platform the Democrats may have? I will take the time to go over it. My guess is that once Mr. Trump is out of office, all the talk of increasing the Supreme Court will vanish as democrats know, they will not always be able to have their way.
Trump should just beat the Dems to it and pack the court himself. if the Dems say the magic number is 13 then appoint 4 more Justices’ right after the midterms if the Conservatives lose the Senate and get them confirmed before the Senate changes hands. If we win and hold on to the Senate in 2026, then look to apply the same strategy to the 2028 presidential election and get new Supreme Court Justices confirmed during a lame duck session. before Trump leaves office.
Only Congress can change the number of judges and the votes are not there.
But points for not even trying to pretend that Trump is not a dictator.
Since when do the Dems announce their strategy in advance? When we take back power, we will pack the Supreme Court!
Another Trump PowerUp unlocked! Defeated on all fronts, leftys pull out their final boss: the commies!
The Marxist come out swinging, finally unleashed, no longer suppressed and relegated to their shadow worlds, all following along in their little red book of commands in unison.
With the power of the people surging through his veins and holding the shield of the US Constitution, Trump blasts away at all the wretched open sores left over from their previous losses, the commies screech and wail! Trump throws insults that strike deep at their ideology before emitting his powerful TDS wave to cloud their judgement and confuse his enemy with facts. The commies resonate with confusion and a flurry of illogical ideologies, crippling their red book focus as they stumble back, search for an effective response and come up empty with “Orange man bad” again and again, in a doom loop of nonsense…
Tune in next week and watch as Trump’s America packs up the communists and sweeps all the crumbs back into the city sewers.