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Sen. Ted Cruz, R-TX, has reintroduced a constitutional amendment to cap the number of Supreme Court Justices at nine, amid calls to expand the court. Cruz, who previously introduced the amendment in 2021 and 2023, is now joined by 15 cosponsors, including Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy (LA), Chuck Grassley (IA), Mike Crapo (ID), Thom Tillis (NC), and John Cornyn (TX).
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Cruz criticized Democrats for seeking to “use the Court to advance policy goals they can’t accomplish electorally.” He added, “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. This amendment is a badly-needed check on their efforts to undermine the integrity of the Court.”
Grassley echoed Cruz’s sentiments, stating that the amendment would protect the Court’s independence from political pressures. “Democrats’ radical court packing scheme would erase the legitimacy of the Supreme Court and destroy historic precedent,” Grassley said. “The Court is a co-equal branch of government, and our Keep Nine Amendment will ensure that it remains independent from political pressure.”
The current nine-justice Court holds a conservative supermajority. Following landmark decisions in recent years, including the overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022, Democrats have renewed calls for court reforms, such as expanding the number of justices and imposing term limits.
In October 2024, then-Vice President Kamala Harris expressed openness to court reforms during a CNN town hall. When asked if she supported expanding the Court from nine to 12 justices, Harris responded, “There is no question that the American people increasingly are losing confidence in the Supreme Court and, in large part, because of the behavior of certain members of that court and because of certain rulings, including the Dobbs decision and taking away a precedent that had been in place for 50 years, protecting a woman’s right to make decisions about her own body.” She added, “I do believe that there should be some kind of reform of the court, and we can study what that actually looks like.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-MN, also called for reforming the Court that same month, stating on social media, “We need to radically reform the broken Supreme Court.”
Democrats have consistently proposed legislation to expand the Supreme Court to a 13-justice bench. In May 2023, Rep. Hank Johnson, D-GA, joined Democratic Sens. Ed Markey (MA), Tina Smith (MN), and Elizabeth Warren (MA), as well as Democratic Reps. Jerry Nadler (NY), Cori Bush (MO), and Adam Schiff (CA), in reintroducing the Judiciary Act of 2023.
“We want to prevent this kind of rot and decay from ever overtaking a Supreme Court again,” Johnson told Fox News Digital in October.
Cruz’s amendment reintroduction comes as the left pushes for Supreme Court expansion and term limits for justices.
