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President Joe Biden has proposed reforms to the Supreme Court, including term limits for justices and stricter ethics rules.

What’s Biden proposing: President Biden is advocating for a series of Supreme Court reforms, including 18-year term limits for justices and introducing a stricter ethics code similar to that of federal judges. Additionally, he is seeking a constitutional amendment to counter the Supreme Court’s recent decision upholding former President Trump’s claims of presidential immunity.

What Biden said: In a Washington Post Op-ed, President 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. We can and must prevent the abuse of presidential power. We can and must restore the public’s faith in the Supreme Court. We can and must strengthen the guardrails of democracy.”

What ethics scandals some point to: Justice Thomas faced backlash after revealing that a billionaire Republican donor funded two luxury vacations for him in 2019. He was also criticized for not recusing himself from cases related to the 2020 election, despite his wife’s views and actions related to the 2020 election. Justice Alito was similarly criticized for refusing to recuse himself from Trump-related cases, even after it was discovered that he had a flag (that some say is tied) to questioning the 2020 election results.

Justices defend themselves: Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito have addressed the accusations against them. Justice Thomas defended his actions, stating that he was not required to disclose the vacations funded by the billionaire donor, as he believed them to be personal hospitality rather than reportable gifts. He has also maintained that his impartiality was not compromised in cases related to the 2020 election. Justice Alito has similarly rejected calls for recusal, arguing that the display of flags tied to the 2020 election at his properties did not influence his judicial decisions.

What Biden needs to enact the changes: Implementing President Biden’s proposed Supreme Court reforms would be challenging given the deeply divided Congress, with Republicans holding a narrow majority in the House of Representatives. Securing the necessary bipartisan support to pass these reforms is widely considered unlikely. In addition, a constitutional amendment requires a two-thirds majority in both the House and Senate, followed by ratification from three-fourths of state legislatures, making it a particularly arduous process.