According to a poll conducted by Gallup, in just the past two decades, the percentage of people who approve of the way the Supreme Court conducts its job has declined from 62% to 40% (Supreme Court). The percentage of people who disapprove has increased from 29% to 58%. It is clear that many Americans today do not approve of the Supreme Court and its Justices. The changes in these percentages can be attributed to the widespread concern that Justices are not impartial. However, it is a fact that bias is within all of us, and we can not only blame the Justices. In fact, this highlights that the Judicial Branch is flawed, outdated, and needs reforms to reflect current times. Recent events and studies have shown that the Judicial Branch is not …show more content…
Currently, California uses term limits for assigning state judges. Judges can be removed by a Committee on Judicial Performance and must run for election every 6 years. The recent scandal of Justice Clarence Thomas being “treated to luxury vacations by billionaire Republican donor Harlan Crow” for over 20 years highlights the need for reform to the Supreme Court (Clarence Thomas Secretly Accepted Luxury Trips From GOP Donor). This event has further damaged the public’s perception of the Supreme Court and damages the overall integrity of the Judicial Branch. As a result, the proposal of 18-year term limits for Justices have quickly gained popularity. Each president would be able to appoint two Justices during their four-year term, ensuring that each president has a chance to hopefully make the Court reflect society’s current sentiments. Former Justice Breyer has stated that “an 18-year term period would give justices enough time to fully learn the job and develop jurisprudence”, showing how a term limit would not interfere with a Justice’s line of work. However, some people argue that term limits would cause upheaval. This is simply not true. Although an 18-year term period will bring changes, decision-making will still be based on precedent and the striking down of the anti-choice law in June Medical v. Russo displays that precedent will continue to play an important role in the Justices’ rulings (The Need for Supreme Court Term Limits). Ultimately, adding term limits to the Judicial Branch will be beneficial as it restores public