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Manchin and Welch Introduce Amendment for SCOTUS Term Limits
Sens. Joe Manchin (I-WV) and Peter Welch (D-VT) have introduced a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on Supreme Court justices. The move is aimed at restoring confidence in the Court, as the approval rating for SCOTUS is at its lowest point in history, with only 16% of Americans reporting "a great deal of confidence" in the highest Court.
The Manchin-Welch amendment would impose single 18-year, non-renewable terms for Supreme Court justices. Each 18-year term would be staggered every two years. Current justices will not be held to term limits, but blocks of 18-year terms will begin to cycle every two years once the amendment is ratified. When a current justice retires, their replacement will be assigned the remainder of the current 18-year block, until every justice on the Court is term limited.
Eventually, every two years there will be a new Supreme Court vacancy to be filled by the current President.
"I’m proud to introduce this legislation with Senator Welch that would establish 18-year term limits for justices of the United States Supreme Court. The current lifetime appointment structure is broken and fuels polarizing confirmation battles and political posturing that has eroded public confidence in the highest court in our land," Manchin, the outgoing senator from West Virginia said.
"Our amendment maintains that there shall never be more than nine justices and would gradually create regular vacancies on the Court, allowing the president to appoint a new justice every two years with the advice and consent of the United States Senate. I encourage my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join our legislation to help restore faith in our judicial system."
"Taking action to restore public trust in our nation’s most powerful Court is as urgent as it is necessary. Setting term limits for Supreme Court justices will cut down on political gamesmanship, and is commonsense reform supported by a majority of Americans," said Welch. "I’m proud to lead this effort with Senator Manchin that will restore Americans’ faith in our judicial system."
There hasn't been an amendment to the United States Constitution in 32 years, since the 27th Amendment ⎯ which mandates that increases in congressional pay only apply to future members of Congress ⎯ was ratified in 1992. The 26th Amendment allowing 18-year-olds to vote was ratified 21 years prior, in 1971.
Supreme Court term limits are enormously popular with the American public. According to a recent survey, 68% of Americans favor term limits for Supreme Court justices, and 69% favor a mandatory retirement age for justices. Amending the constitution requires passage by a two-thirds vote in both houses of congress, or a request by two-thirds of states, and then ratification by three-fourths of state legislatures (38 states).
Read the full Manchin-Welch Resolution here:
