Quote:
Originally Posted by Tex
The rumor in the news this morning is that the White House is preparing for two more potential vacancies on the court next spring. This of course really chafes people like me, after watching George Bush only get two appointees in 8 years, and only one of them was after a retirement.
I read a proposal some time ago that would significantly depoliticize the selection of SCOTUS judges. Change the tenure from a lifetime appointment to 18 years, and rotate appointments every 2 years. One-term presidents get two, and two-term presidents get four, guaranteed.
No pressure to retire (or NOT to retire), and no rush to appoint young lawyers to the bench so they can stay there as long as possible. Historically, 18 years is a term that far exceeds any other politics ... the House, Senate, and Presidency are all likely to change parties at least once during that time.
It would be a much better system, and while it would not eliminate all SCOTUS politics, it would really reduce the acrimony. Thus, it will never happen.
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Not sure I understand how your proposal changes anything. Are you saying a justice couldn't retire before 18 years? What if he dies? Does the seat remain vacant? I am certain you can't require a person to keep a job if they don't want it, so do retired justice seats also stay vacant? That seems silly. If you are going to fill the vacancies, won't they still just time their retirements just as they all do now?
Going to 18 years doesn't seem to do a single thing to fix the problem you see.