Democrats in the House of Representatives are set to introduce a bill next week that seeks to limit the terms of U.S. Supreme Court justices to 18 years from current lifetime appointments.
The move comes as a method to prevent longtime partisanship from particular appointments after the passing of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. According to Reuters, which has looked over the bill, the legislation “would allow every president to nominate two justices per four-year term.”
According to Reuters, the legislation, titled the Supreme Court Term Limits and Regular Appointments Act, will be introduced by Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), Rep. Joe Kennedy III (D-MA), and Rep. Don Beyer (D-VA) on Tuesday.
“It would save the country a lot of agony and help lower the temperature over fights for the court that go to the fault lines of cultural issues and is one of the primary things tearing at our social fabric,” said Khanna.
Reuters also noted that the “bill seeks to avoid constitutional concerns by exempting current justices from the 18-year rule. Those appointed under term limits would become ‘senior’ upon retirement and rotate to lower courts.”
“That’s perfectly consistent with their judicial independence and having a lifetime salary and a lifetime appointment,” Khanna said of the bill’s measure.
President Trump is scheduled to announce his nominee for the Supreme Court vacancy on Saturday from the White House at 5:00 p.m. ET.
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