Bill Barr: Biden's reforms would purge Supreme Court's conservative justices

Former Attorney General Bill Barr offered his concerns about President Biden's reform proposals for the Supreme Court on Monday, arguing they would eliminate the high court's conservative justices and "destroy the independence of the judiciary."

"Americans need to understand that the campaign to radically change the Court is coming. While current proposals like term limits for the longest-serving justices and an imposed code of ethics threaten the Constitution and the separation of powers, the far left is demanding that Court be packed with additional liberal justices," Barr and Kelly Shackelford — the president, CEO and chief counsel for First Liberty Institute — wrote in an op-ed published with Fox News on Monday.

Barr and Shackelford said such changes will become reality if the eventual Democratic presidential nominee — likely Vice President Harris — wins in November.

"If they win, that is exactly what will happen, and it only takes a majority vote and the signature of the President," they wrote, pointing to a comment from Harris, who reportedly has said she is "open" to a conversation about increasing the number of justices on the Supreme Court.

Biden released his own op-ed in The Washington Post on Monday morning, endorsing broad reforms to the nation's highest court.

His threefold proposal includes 18-year term limits for the nine justices, which would enable the sitting president to appoint a new justice every two years, and a binding code of conduct.

The proposals signal a significant shift for Biden, who has typically resisted progressives' calls for Supreme Court reforms over concerns it would politicize the bench. Harris said Monday she backs Biden's plan.

Barr's op-ed pointed to comments made by then-Sen. Biden in 1983, during which he argued changing the court's structure was a "bonehead idea."

"He was right. The last thing we need in this country right now is a Supreme Court coup that would threaten our democratic republic," the op-ed stated.

Echoing the sentiments from many Republicans, who are steadfastly opposed to Supreme Court reform, Barr and Shackelford accused the left of attempting to "take over" the bench due to anger over some of its recent decisions.

Biden has increasingly criticized the court, especially after it overturned constitutional abortion protections and granted some criminal immunity for presidents.

"The left is just upset by a small number of cases with which they disagree, and they are willing to take down the Court and the rule of law to get their way," Barr and Shackelford stated in the op-ed. "The Supreme Court is the only branch of government that stands in the way of one-party rule."

The op-ed painted a grim picture for what "court packing" could look life, suggesting civil and religious liberties will be limited and First Amendment rights for the left's political opponents would be "trampled."

"In truth, 'court reform' is nothing more than a desperate attack to subvert the legitimacy of the Supreme Court because it contains a majority of justices committed to the Constitution and originalism," Barr and Shackelford wrote. "If this coup succeeds, the rule of law will be over as the judiciary will become little more than a political tool of whomever holds power."

The Hill reached out to the White House for comment.