WASHINGTON – Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) joined Judiciary Committee member Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in introducing a constitutional amendment to maintain a total of nine Supreme Court justices on the bench at a time. Once approved by Congress, the amendment would go to the states for ratification.
“Democrats’ radical court packing scheme would erase the legitimacy of the Supreme Court and destroy historic precedent. The Court is a co-equal branch of government, and our Keep Nine Amendment will ensure that it remains independent from political pressure,” Grassley said.
“For years, Democrats have openly said they intend to pack the Supreme Court. They seek to use the Court to advance policy goals they can’t accomplish electorally. Such a move would be a direct assault on the design of our Constitution, which is designed to ensure the Supreme Court remains a non-partisan guardian of the rule of law,” Cruz said. “This amendment is a badly-needed check on their efforts to undermine the integrity of the Court.”
Additional cosponsors are Sens. John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.), Todd Young (R-Ind.), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), Jim Banks (R-Ind.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.).
Read the amendment text HERE.