NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — President Biden's proposal to reform the Supreme Court would take efforts from both Congress and state legislatures, but among the proposals would be a binding code of conduct for the U.S. Supreme Court.
With concerns over ethics and polling revealing that most Americans believe the justices place party ideology over impartiality, former State Supreme Court Justice and current Dean of the Nashville School of Law William Koch says it may do the Supreme Court good to hold themselves to the same ethical standards that other federal judges are covered by.
"It would benefit the public's view of the courts if the courts were under that sort of scrutiny," Koch said.
Biden also is proposing a constitutional amendment stripping the president of immunity for crimes committed while in office, and one instituting 18-year term limits for Supreme Court justices.
But can these changes actually happen? That's far from likely.
First, two-thirds of both houses of Congress would have to approve a constitutional amendment — right now Republicans control the house while Democrats control the Senate.
Then the changes would need to be ratified by three fourths, or 38 out of 50 state legislatures, meaning the likelihood of any of these changes eventually adding to the constitution is very unlikely.
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-Carrie Sharp
