Biden, Harris call for Supreme Court term limits, code of conduct, limits on presidential immunity

President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are calling on Congress to impose term limits and a code of conduct on the Supreme Court while also drafting limits on presidential immunity, a White House official said.

Biden will discuss the proposed reforms during remarks on Monday at the LBJ Presidential Library, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, the official said. Biden also addressed his desire for Supreme Court reform in an op-ed published Monday morning.

‘I served as a U.S. senator for 36 years, including as chairman and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee. I have overseen more Supreme Court nominations as senator, vice president and president than anyone living today,’ Biden said in the op-ed, published by the Washington Post. 

‘I have great respect for our institutions and separation of powers. What is happening now is not normal, and it undermines the public’s confidence in the court’s decisions, including those impacting personal freedoms. We now stand in a breach,’ Biden wrote.

Biden’s reforms would eliminate any immunity a former president enjoys for crimes committed while in office.

Harris, who is running for president, endorsed the push. ‘Today, there is a clear crisis of confidence facing the Supreme Court as its fairness has been called into question after numerous ethics scandals and decision after decision overturning long-standing precedent,’ she said.

Regarding the Supreme Court, Biden wants to impose a term limit of 18 years for justices. Once fully adopted, it would allow presidents to appoint new justices at a cadence of once every two years.

Biden argued the new Supreme Court code of conduct should require justices to ‘disclose gifts, refrain from public political activity, and recuse themselves from cases in which they or their spouses have financial or other conflicts of interest.’

‘President Biden and Vice President Harris look forward to working with Congress and empowering the American people to prevent the abuse of Presidential power, restore faith in the Supreme Court, and strengthen the guardrails of democracy,’ the White House official said.

The op-ed represents Biden’s first major policy push since formally announcing his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential race earlier this month.