Remember Demand Justice? Back in 2021, the progressive group pushed for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer – then age 82 – to resign so that Joe Biden could appoint his replacement rather than risk dying under a Republican president. Well, they’re back – and this time they have a plan to block President Donald Trump from appointing any more justices should vacancies arise. And they’re backed by yet another relic of the Democratic Party, former vice president and twice-failed presidential candidate Kamala Harris. And not to be left out in the cold, James Carville, the Ragin’ Cajun himself, chimed in recently on the Supreme Court as well. And why not? They always come in threes, as the saying goes.
Harris, Trump, and a Plot to Control the Court
Far from giving up on politics, Kamala Harris is back on the campaign trail. This time, however, she’s rallying donors to back fundraising by Josh Orton, president of Demand Justice, to oppose “additional justices” that might be nominated by Trump this term before any vacancies appear.
“We must be clear eyed about what is at stake with the Supreme Court right now,” Harris wrote on X in a post highlighting an article from The New York Times on Demand Justice’s newest project. “We cannot allow Donald trump to hand pick one, if not two, additional justices. The nation’s highest court must be stop from becoming even more beholden to him.”
The NYT article in question reveals the “multimillion-dollar effort to oppose potential Trump Supreme Court appointees before they happen.” Orton announced that “the project would cost $3 million to start and $15 million more if vacancies occurred.” They’re eyeing Justices Clarence Thomas (77) and Samuel Alito (76), the oldest two currently on the Court.
If you’re thinking you’ve seen this episode before, it’s because you basically have. It’s a reboot – if not a straight-up rerun – of what, for a while, appeared to be a favorite show among progressives. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a left-wing legend in the Court, passed away on September 19, 2020, at the age of 87. Her death gave President Trump his third vacancy, and he nominated Amy Coney Barrett, who was confirmed by the US Senate on October 26, 2020.
Come 2021, Democrats held technical majorities in both the House (222-215) and the Senate (a 50-50 split), but with Kamala Harris as tiebreaker after Inauguration Day). Biden and Harris held the White House. But there was a conservative majority on the Supreme Court, thanks in large part to Donald Trump getting three appointments in his one term as president. And Stephen Breyer, generally considered a reliable left-wing vote, was 82 years old. If he lived as long as Ginsburg, he’d be a year into the next presidency when he passed.
The progressive group Demand Justice wasn’t willing to take that chance. They campaigned for Breyer to “do the right thing” and step down so that Biden could appoint a worthy successor. Justice Breyer resisted, for a time, but eventually he caved to the pressure, and Ketanji Brown Jackson took the bench in his place.
From a purely practical perspective, of course, this was the right decision. Thanks to the gift of hindsight, we know that Breyer – now age 87 and still going – would have left Trump yet another vacancy had he held his seat but passed at RBG’s age. And, of course, Trump’s second term isn’t over yet, and there’s no guarantee Breyer won’t pass before the next administration takes over. His replacement, however, is in her mid-fifties. There’s no reason not to believe she’ll be around – and on the Court – for the next 20 to 30 years, at least, meaning her position is most likely safe regardless of who wins in 2028.
Thomas and Alito, of course, aren’t the reliable leftist voices Ginsburg and Breyer were, so Demand Justice isn’t hoping they do retire this term – they’re just afraid they might.
And they might. Clarence Thomas is 77, Samuel Alito is 76, and both Sonia Sotomayor and John Roberts are 71. Any one of them could retire or pass away at any time. Sotomayor, of course, is unlikely to retire under a Republican president – but the other three could look to Breyer’s example and do the same.
The strategy put forth by Demand Justice – which will apparently cost millions of dollars – is to aggressively advertise and frame potential nominees as unqualified loyalists. This is ostensibly aimed at the senators who would have to vote on confirmation of any such nominee – but in reality, it’s likely more about controlling the dominant narrative and swaying voters to put pressure on their senators than it is actually about changing lawmaker minds directly.
Court Packing Comes Round Again
Demand Justice also advocated for packing the court by adding several new progressive justices while Democrats held the trifecta. While Biden himself never openly supported this, Harris has expressed her openness to the idea since the 2020 campaign. And they aren’t alone. Yet another ghost of Democrats’ past, James Carville, recently chimed in to explain the inevitable court packing and how it would work. “I’m going to tell you what’s going to happen,” Carville said in a Fox interview. “A Democrat is going to be elected in 2028. You know that. I know that. The Democratic president is going to announce a special transition advisory committee on the reform of the Supreme Court. They’re going to recommend that the number of Supreme Court justices go from nine to 13. That’s going to happen, people.”
Carville believes the next Democrat to win the White House will and even should do this. The Ragin’ Cajun knows a thing or two about the Democratic Party’s platform and what plans the party may hold for future administrations.
Whether a Democrat wins in 2028 or not, the plan of Carville, Harris, and Demand Justice – among many others – likely marks the focus moving forward of the Democratic Party. Figure out who Donald Trump – or his successor, should another Republican follow – is likely to pick to replace the oldest justices in the Supreme Court, then discredit them and pressure the Senate to reject them when the time comes. And as soon as Democrats once again hold the White House and both chambers of Congress, pack the Court with progressives to ensure control for decades to come.
