July 29 (UPI) — President Joe Biden called for expanding civil rights in America by “preventing abuse of presidential power and restoring faith in the U.S. Supreme Court,” during a speech Monday to mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
“In a great society, no one should be left behind. It’s time for us to come to see that every American gets a decent break and a fair chance to make good,” Biden said in remarks at the Lyndon Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, Texas.
The Civil Rights Act was signed by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and outlawed segregation in business establishments, public schools and other public places, while prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex or national origin. The act also established the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
“A defining moment that has since opened doors for all Americans regardless of race, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religion, national origin. Together with the Voting Rights Act and the Fair Housing Act, these three landmark laws he signed are remarkable,” Biden said.
“Now, we live in a different era. In recent years, extreme opinions that the Supreme Court has handed down have undermined long-established civil rights principles and protections.”
“In 2022, the court overrode Roe v. Wade and the right to choose. It had been the law of the land for 50 years,” Biden said. “And most recently and most shockingly, the Supreme Court established in Trump v. The United States a dangerous precedent. They ruled as you know that the president of the United States has immunity for potential crimes he may have committed while in office.”
Earlier Monday, Biden proposed major changes to the Supreme Court and called on Congress to pass limits on presidential immunity, in the wake of the court’s recent ruling on a case brought by former President Donald Trump, in addition to a “binding” code of ethics to curb conflicts of interest and term limits for Supreme Court justices.
“I served as a U.S. senator for 36 years, including as a chairman and ranking member of the Judiciary Committee. I have overseen more Supreme Court nominations as senator, vice president and president than anyone living today,” Biden said.
“We’ve had term limits for presidents of the United States for nearly 75 years after the Truman administration. And I believe we should have term limits for Supreme Court justices of the United States, as well.”
While there are no term limits for the U.S. House or Senate, Biden is proposing term limits for the Supreme Court of 18 years, with presidential appointments every two years.
“I’m also calling for a constitutional amendment, called ‘No one is Above the Law Amendment,'” Biden added. “It holds there is no immunity for crimes a former president committed while in office.”
“And I’m calling for a binding code of conduct for the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court’s current code of ethics is weak and even more frightening, voluntary,” Biden said. “Under the reform I propose, justices would be required to disclose gifts, refrain from public political activity and recuse themselves from cases where they or their spouses have a financial or other conflict of interest.”
On Monday, House Speaker Mike Johnson called Biden’s Supreme Court reforms “dead on arrival.”
“It is telling that Democrats want to change the system that has guided our nation since its founding, simply because they disagree with some of the court’s recent decisions. This dangerous gambit of the Biden-Harris administration is dead on arrival in the House,” Johnson wrote Monday in a post on X.
Upon arriving in Austin, Biden responded to a reporter’s question about Johnson’s remark, saying “I think that’s what he is — dead on arrival.”