乔·拜登总统周一呼吁最高法院改革，包括法官的任期限制，具有约束力的行为准则和道德规则，以及宪法修正案，以剥夺总统免于起诉.
总统豁免权
在…里专栏文章拜登在《华盛顿邮报》周一发表的文章中写道:“这个国家建立在一个简单而深刻的原则上:没有人可以凌驾于法律之上。不是美国总统。不是美国最高法院的法官。没有人。”
“拜登总统和开国元勋们一样，认为总统的权力是有限的，而不是绝对的，最终必须属于人民，”一名白宫官员在专栏发表前说他呼吁修改宪法，明确规定任何总统都不能凌驾于法律之上，也不能因为在任期间犯下的罪行而免于起诉。"
拜登将在得克萨斯州奥斯汀的LBJ总统图书馆发表讲话时倡导这些改革，他将在那里纪念民权法案60周年。
宪法修正案并不容易完成。它必须由众议院和参议院的三分之二投票提出，或者由34个州要求召开制宪会议。从那里开始，38个州的立法机构必须批准它。最近一次宪法修正案是1992年的第27次修正案，涉及国会的薪酬变化。
拜登的专栏文章发表之前，最高法院本月早些时候裁定，前总统唐纳德·特朗普有权获得一些豁免权，前总统对“核心”官方行为享有绝对豁免权。
斯科特任期限制
据白宫官员称，拜登还在推动国会实施最高法院大法官18年任期的限制，总统每两年任命一名大法官。目前，大法官实行终身任命制。
“我担任美国参议员36年，包括担任司法委员会主席和高级成员，”拜登在他的专栏中写道。“作为参议员、副总统和总统，我监督的最高法院提名比当今任何人都多。我非常尊重我们的制度和分权。现在发生的事情是不正常的，它破坏了公众对法院判决的信心，包括那些影响个人自由的判决。我们现在处于一个缺口。”
这位官员说，拜登希望限制最高法院的任期，就像限制总统任期一样。
“美国是唯一一个给予最高法院法官终身席位的主要宪政民主国家，”该官员补充道。“任期限制将有助于确保法院成员有一定的规律性变化;提高法院提名的可预见性，减少随意性;并减少任何一任总统对后代施加不当影响的可能性。”
史考特行为准则
此外，拜登正在敦促高等法院制定具有约束力和可执行的行为准则和道德规则，要求法官“披露礼物，避免公开政治活动，并回避他们或他们的配偶有财务或其他利益冲突的案件，”这位白宫官员说。
“最高法院的法官不应该免除适用于所有其他联邦法官的可执行的行为准则，”这位官员说。
这位官员说，美国最高法院总统委员会为拜登提供了对他的改革建议的分析，他对此表示感谢。
11月，最高法院的9名法官签署了一项新的正式的行为准则，但批评人士表示，这不具有约束力，只是“一个友好的建议”
拜登呼吁斯科特改革是在ProPublica首次报道一年多之后克拉伦斯·托马斯法官从一个亿万富翁共和党捐助者那里得到豪华旅行和招待津贴塞缪尔·阿利托法官没有报告他与一位富有的对冲基金经理的豪华度假，这位经理后来在最高法院有业务。
阿利托驳斥了这些指控，辩称大法官“通常将”有关招待的“规则”解释为“意味着社交活动的住宿和交通不属于可申报的礼物。”他还声称，他不知道该经理与法庭审理的案件有什么联系，他与该男子的谈话是有限的，不包括他的业务或法庭的业务。托马斯当时在一份声明中说，“这种来自亲密私人朋友的私人款待，在法庭上没有业务，是不可报告的。”
上个月，最高法院发布了一项一套新的财务披露这说明了大法官的一些收入和庭外关系，尽管批评者说一些关键信息会提供更全面的观点，但这些信息没有包括在内。当时，对阿利托和托马斯的披露还没有公布。
当天晚些时候，托马斯首次正式披露了2019年7月前往印度尼西亚的巴厘岛和加利福尼亚的波西米亚格罗夫俱乐部，都是由亿万富翁哈兰·克罗买单。这些旅行，包括在巴厘岛住一晚酒店或在私人俱乐部住三晚，托马斯没有报告。
五月，纽约时报刊登了一张倒置的美国国旗在2021年1月6日国会大厦骚乱后的几周内，在弗吉尼亚州阿利托斯的家外面飞行。众所周知，暴徒和附属团体将美国国旗倒挂着，以此抗议拜登在2020年大选中获胜。
当时，阿利托在给《纽约时报》的一份声明中说，是他的妻子玛莎-安·阿利托(Martha-Ann Alito)在被邻居“令人反感的”院子标志激怒后，以这种方式悬挂国旗。
《旗帜报》的报道正值最高法院审理1月6日的相关案件。
周日，在拜登宣布之前，哥伦比亚广播公司问南卡罗来纳州共和党参议员林赛·格雷厄姆(Lindsey Graham)是否愿意与总统合作进行法院改革。格雷厄姆拒绝了这一想法，称民主党正试图“削弱保守派法院”。
当被直接问到是否支持任期限制时，格雷厄姆说，“不，不，不，不，不。”
Biden calls for Supreme Court reforms, amendment to strip presidents of immunity from prosecution
President Joe Biden on Monday called forSupreme Courtreforms, including term limits for justices, a binding code of conduct and ethics rules, and for a constitutional amendment to strip presidents ofimmunity from prosecution.
Presidential immunity
Inan op-edpublished Monday by The Washington Post, Biden wrote, "This nation was founded on a simple yet profound principle: No one is above the law. Not the president of the United States. Not a justice on the Supreme Court of the United States. No one."
"President Biden shares the Founders' belief that the President's power is limited—not absolute—and must ultimately reside with the people," a White House official said prior to the op-ed's publication. "He is calling for a constitutional amendment that makes clear no president is above the law or immune from prosecution for crimes committed while in office."
Biden will advocate for these reforms during remarks at the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin, Texas, where he will mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act.
A constitutional amendment is not easily accomplished. It must either be proposed by a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate or a constitutional convention is requested by 34 states. From there, 38 state legislatures would have to approve it. The last time an amendment was added to the Constitution was the 27th Amendment in 1992, which concerned changes in pay for Congress.
Biden's op-ed comes after the Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that former President Donald Trump was entitled to some immunity and that former presidents had absolute immunity for "core" official acts.
SCOTUS term limits
Biden is also pushing Congress to implement 18-year term limits for Supreme Court justices, with presidents appointing a justice every two years, according to the White House official. Currently, justices serve lifetime appointments.
"I served as a U.S. senator for 36 years, including as chairman and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee," Biden wrote in his op-ed. "I have overseen more Supreme Court nominations as senator, vice president and president than anyone living today. 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."
The official said Biden wants term limits on the Court just as limits were placed on the presidency.
"The United States is the only major constitutional democracy that gives lifetime seats to its high court Justices," the official added. "Term limits would help ensure that the Court's membership changes with some regularity; make timing for Court nominations more predictable and less arbitrary; and reduce the chance that any single Presidency imposes undue influence for generations to come."
SCOTUS Code of Conduct
Further, Biden is pressing for a binding and enforceable code of conduct and ethics rules for the high court that would 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," the White House official said.
"Supreme Court Justices should not be exempt from the enforceable code of conduct that applies to every other federal judge," the official argued.
The official said the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States provided Biden with analysis on his reform proposals, for which he is thankful.
In November, the court’s nine justices signed a newformal code of conduct, but critics have said it was not binding and merely "a friendly suggestion."
Biden's call for SCOTUS reform comes over a year after ProPublica first reportedJustice Clarence Thomasreceived luxury travel and hospitality perks from a billionaire Republican donor, and thatJustice Samuel Alitofailed to report a luxury vacation he took with a wealthy hedge fund manager who later had business before the Supreme Court.
Alito rebuffed the allegations arguing that the justices "commonly interpreted" rules regarding hospitality "to mean that accommodations and transportation for social events were not reportable gifts." He also asserted he was not aware of the manager's connection in the cases that went before the court, and that his conversations with the man were limited and didn't include his business or that of the court. Thomas said in a statement at the time, "This sort of personal hospitality from close personal friends, who did not have business before the Court, was not reportable."
Last month, the Supreme Court released anew set of financial disclosuresthat illuminates some of the income and outside court affiliations for justices, though some key information critics say would give a fuller view were not included. At the time, disclosures for Alito and Thomas were not released.
Later that same day, Thomas, for the first time, formally disclosed July 2019 trips toBali, Indonesia, and the Bohemian Grove Club in California, both paid for by billionaire Harlan Crow. These trips, which included a one-night hotel stay in Bali or three-night stay at the private club, had gone unreported by Thomas.
In May, the New York Times published a photo of anupside-down American flagflying outside the Alitos’ home in Virginia in the weeks after the January 6, 2021, Capitol riots. Rioters and affiliate groups have been known to fly the American flag upside-down as a form of protesting Biden’s 2020 election victory.
At the time, in a statement to the New York Times, Alito said it was his wife, Martha-Ann Alito, who flew the flag in that manner after being offended by a neighbor’s "objectionable" yard signs.
The reports of the flag came as a Jan. 6-related case was before the Supreme Court.
On Sunday, prior to Biden's announcement, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina was asked by CBS if he would work with the president on court reform. Graham rejected the idea, saying Democrats are trying "to undercut the conservative court."
Pressed directly on if he supported term limits, Graham said, "No, no, no, no, no."
