The idea has occurred to me....

[lastlib]

....that enlarging the Court would actually DE-politicize it. If enlarged, the change of one justice would be less likely to change the ideological balance, and we wouldn't have the brutal political fights over vacancies that we have now. Yes, there would be a hellacious fight over doing it, but the end result would be better for the country, I think. I'd like to see that idea tested. DU thoughts?

[regnaD kciN]

1. No question about it...

After all, depoliticizing it is what we want, not just politicizing it in our direction, because that just guarantees an equal reaction down the road.

[Statistical]

2. Agreed. The Supreme Court likely should be expanded even without this move by Moscow Mitch.

This does however provide the motivation and political cover.

Likewise the House of Reps should be expanded as well. Keeping it capped at 435 as the population grows gives disproportionate power to small states.

[regnaD kciN]

3. Very much so...

Expand the Court, expand the House, and expand the U.S.A. (by making Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and Guam states)!

[jmowreader]

9. The hard right would never go for that

The last time the US expanded, they brought in one liberal and one conservative state to retain the balance that had developed at the time. (They also thought HI would be the conservative state and AK the liberal. That didn’t work out.)

The only way you’re likely to get PR, DC and Guam in as states is to do something like dividing Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma into two states each. (Those are fairly populous red states; dividing Wyoming wouldn’t work because the population is so low.)

I like the idea of expanding the House, and just think of the jobs building the new office buildings will create.

[Bettie]

5. SO much this

We NEED to expand the House of Representatives!

[DinahMoeHum]

4. Well, there's nothing in the Constitution that forbids it. . .

. . .and the idea that there should be only 9 Supreme Court justices isn't written in stone.

[Thekaspervote]

6. There has in the past been as many as 15, and several times in history it's been 11

[Bayard]

7. No matter how many justices there are,

There's always going to be a fight for power. Dems get it changed to 12, and fill the 3 new seats, rethugs will fight for 20 the next time around. It will just keep escalating.

[marlakay]

8. I think we should expand it but only

To where both sides are equal. For every rightwing there should be a progressive one, for every moderate on one side then a moderate on the other. Make it totally balanced.

And equal amount of women and men and minorities.