@danielbsmith Yes, 13 would correspond to the number of federal districts, the way 9 used to. But having a random selection of 8 justices presents a potential problem, since everything they do now is in secret, and having the 9th be from the district the case originated from would increase the district shopping currently going on.
My modest proposal to fix SCOTUS: Add 4 justices to at least dilute the partisanship and corruption and establish a term limit of 20 years for active service, after which the Justice would enter “senior” status, still get paid, and able to sub in when there’s a temporary vacancy, but not be an active member of the Court. Both these changes would theoretically not require a Constitutional amendment. But of course, a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate would still be needed to pass them.
@1Firewire Yeah, a self-policing, non-binding ethics code should work, right? SCOTUS doesn’t really care about consequences. What consequences? They’re SUPREME! Nothing can touch them. The only solution is to expand the Court so at least the partisanship and corruption can be diluted.
@IslandNewsService A friend of mine grew up on Tybee Island. Never been there, but have visited Isle of Palms and currently live on Oak Island, N.C.
Retired surgeon, now a novel writer (thrillers mostly) in North Carolina