U.S. Supreme Court

Sen. Ted Cruz holds hearing on how to rein in SCOTUS 'lawlessness'

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Sen. Ted Cruz. Andrew Cline / Shutterstock.com

U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a candidate for the GOP presidential nomination, held a Senate Judiciary subcommittee hearing on Wednesday that considered how to battle “judicial tyranny.”

Cruz, who has proposed retention elections for Supreme Court justices, began the hearing by saying the Supreme Court “has declared itself as a super legislature.”

“Much to my great disappointment this past term, the court crossed a line and continued its long descent into lawlessness to a level that I believe demands action,” Cruz said. The National Law Journal (sub. req.), National Journal and the Washington Times have stories, while How Appealing links to additional coverage.

Testifying at the hearing were three scholars, two of them conservative. Other suggestions aired at the hearing included amending the Constitution to:

• Allow a majority of states to override decisions that threaten their sovereignty.

• Allow Supreme Court decisions to be overturned by a two-thirds vote by both the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives.

• Implement term limits.

• Make it easier to amend the Constitution.

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