President Biden expressed his opposition Thursday to expanding the Supreme Court in the wake of its latest controversial decision, warning that it would risk further politicizing the institution.
Biden, in an interview with MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace, was asked if the 6-3 conservative majority on the high court is “too young and too conservative” and could do too much harm to the country with its rulings.
“I think they may do too much harm,” Biden said. “But I think if we start the process of trying to expand the court, we’re going to politicize it maybe forever in a way that’s not healthy.”
“Maybe it’s just the optimist in me — I think that some of the court are beginning to realize their legitimacy is being questioned in ways that it hadn’t been questioned in the past,” Biden added, suggesting Chief Justice John Roberts is among those weighing that.
The White House previously indicated that Biden was opposed to expanding the Supreme Court in the wake of its ruling in June 2022 that overturned Roe v. Wade.
Some progressive Democrats have called for reform of the Supreme Court in recent years as its conservative majority has hardened and handed down controversial rulings on abortion, gun rights and, most recently, affirmative action.
Biden has condemned several of those decisions, and earlier Thursday he said the Supreme Court was “not a normal court” and was unraveling the rights of millions of Americans.
Biden upon taking office appointed a commission of experts to explore potential ideas for court reform. The commission adopted a report in 2021 that warned that drastic changes could threaten the institution, but it stopped short of endorsing any specific changes.