Justice Gorsuch: This is what happens when there is too much law
Trump-appointed Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch joins ‘America Reports’ to discuss President Biden’s proposed SCOTUS radical changes, anti-SCOTUS sentiment, and separation of powers.
Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch responded to President Biden's proposals to overhaul the Supreme Court with a brief warning in an interview Monday, calling it potentially "dangerous."
Gorsuch sat down with "America Reports" host Sandra Smith in a wide-ranging interview following the release of his new book, "Over Ruled: The Human Toll of Too Much Law." Asked about Biden's suggestions for changes to the Supreme Court, Gorsuch stopped short of commenting, telling Smith, "You’re not going to be surprised that in a presidential election year I am not going to get into politics."
Smith pressed the justice, however, about concern that Biden's proposed reforms could be in violation of the separation of powers.
"I think that is a question all Americans have to ask," Gorsuch replied.
"Too little law, that is a danger to our freedoms and our aspirations for equal treatment of all persons. Too much law, maybe that is a danger, too," he added.
The Trump appointee went on to quote James Madison, who warned about the consequences of having too many laws in the U.S.
"The thing to fear most is too much law in a democracy and what happens when laws become too voluminous to be understood by ordinary Americans. He [Madison] said, the money and the connected can find their way. They can figure it out better than anyone else. And everyone else, ordinary people, will be put at a disadvantage," Gorsuch told Smith.
"And that’s the question we have to ask yourselves today," he continued. "About the separation of powers when it comes to federalism vertically, in our separation of powers and also horizontally in terms of how much we do through our legislative branch versus how much we leave to unelected officials."
Smith also asked the justice about diminishing trust in the Supreme Court, pointing to polling that suggests a majority of Americans support some level of reforms to the judicial branch.
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 04: Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch (L) and Supreme Justice Brett Kavanaugh attend the State of the Union address in the chamber of the U.S. House of Representatives on February 04, 2020 in Washington, DC. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
Gorsuch maintained that he would not comment on politics in an election year, but said criticism comes "with the territory."
"All I can do is work as a judge. I’m going to stay out of politics. It’s a presidential election year. All I can do is fulfill my oath as best I can," he said. "My job is to decide cases and controversies as fairly as I can to the people who come before me. There are two lives on either side… in every case. A wise old judge once told me your job is to make half the people unhappy 100% of the time. Somebody has to win and somebody has to lose. And that is just the nature of the job. If there are criticisms, that kind of comes with the territory."
Gorsuch proceeded to defend the High Court, telling Smith, "I think we have an amazing institution."
"The American people file 50 million lawsuits every year. Out of 340 million of us, that’s like 1 out of 7, and I’m not counting parking tickets or speeding tickets. You are a rather litigious bunch, you all," he said.
Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch stands during a group photo at the Supreme Court in Washington, April 23, 2021. (Erin Schaff/The New York Times via AP, Pool, File)
"Almost all of those cases are resolved at the trial court level without appeal. Somebody wins and somebody loses. The loser, and I represented plenty of them when I was in private practice, accept the loss. They may not like it but they were heard. And they feel like they were heard and they understand it.
"That’s how determinate our law is in this country. I think when you step back and look at the forest, you realize rule of law in this country is amazing and our independent judiciary is a blessing."
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Last month, Biden and Vice President Harris called on Congress to impose term limits and a code of conduct on the Supreme Court while also drafting limits on presidential immunity. Critics have called the push "radical," and accused Biden and Harris of trying to gin up votes from the left-wing base of the Democrat party despite previously branding themselves as "moderates."
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