Today in Supreme Court History: March 9, 1937

3/9/1937: President Roosevelt delivers a fireside chat on his Court-packing plan.

Comments

[apedad]

Those opposing this plan have sought to arouse prejudice and fear by crying that I am seeking to "pack" the Supreme Court and that a baneful precedent will be established.

What do they mean by the words "packing the Court"?

Let me answer this question with a bluntness that will end all honest misunderstanding of my purposes.

If by that phrase "packing the Court" it is charged that I wish to place on the bench spineless puppets who would disregard the law and would decide specific cases as I wished them to be decided, I make this answer: that no President fit for his office would appoint, and no Senate of honorable men fit for their office would confirm, that kind of appointees to the Supreme Court. But if by that phrase the charge is made that I would appoint and the Senate would confirm Justices worthy to sit beside present members of the Court who understand those modern conditions, that I will appoint Justices who will not undertake to override the judgment of the Congress on legislative policy, that I will appoint Justices who will act as Justices and not as legislators - if the appointment of such Justices can be called "packing the Courts," then I say that I and with me the vast majority of the American people favor doing just that thing- now.

[apedad]

Forgot to add this is from his chat....

[Michael P]

If by that phrase "packing the Court" it is charged that I wish to place on the bench spineless puppets who would disregard the law and would decide specific cases as I wished them to be decided, I make this answer: that no President fit for his office would appoint, and no Senate of honorable men fit for their office would confirm, that kind of appointees to the Supreme Court.

The block voting tendencies of SC justices appointed by Democrats suggests that Democrats are not fit for office either in the Senate or the White House.

[Bob from Ohio]

He was an eloquent liar.

[Dan Schiavetta]

This was not a cynical, selfish or political move. Not even an ideological one; FDR was not an ideologue. His concern was for the millions of families devastated by the Depression, who he sincerely believed would be helped by the New Deal which the current Court was frustrating.

[Mark Regan]

Well, now, wait a minute. Of course court-packing was a political move, and, to the extent that Roosevelt and Attorney General Cummings were delighted to rely in part on a memo by then-Justice and former Attorney General McReynolds, it was a cynical move as well.

[Dan Schiavetta]

It was not to the political advantage of either himself or the Democratic Party to go out on a limb like that. He could have just blamed everything on the conservative Court, and by extension on Republicans.

[Michael P]

Please, won't anyone think of the children, like FDR did?

He may have had good intentions, but we know which road is paved with those.

[Dan Schiavetta]

"And the road that's paved with bad intentions -- where does that lead to?"

[Kevin Smith]

Much like Rome, all roads lead there eventually

[Á àß äẞç ãþÇđ âÞ¢Đæ ǎB€Ðëf ảhf]

Same place, but it's more obvious where it's going, so less likely to be built; and no one has to save face by dreaming up unworkable detours to disguise where it's already gotten.

[Á àß äẞç ãþÇđ âÞ¢Đæ ǎB€Ðëf ảhf]

Oh pull the other one!

Wish I could have video of you trying to say that with a straight face.

[Bob from Ohio]

"cynical, selfish or political"

Were you born yesterday?

[Dan Schiavetta]

Not a response.

[Bob from Ohio]

Sure it is. Every action by a politician [esp. a super successful one like FDR] is either cynical, selfish or political.

[Alpheus W Drinkwater]

Roosevelt wanted these New Deal programs as designed because he felt strongly the country needed them. I suppose you could call that political. I don't see it as being cynical or selfish, he was an extremely pragmatic politician, and saw court packing as a way of insuring his programs weren't struck down by the court.

I suppose you could argue that he wanted the programs because all the people helped by them would then vote for him and his party. But that's basically the way democracy is supposed to work.

[Cal Cetín]

Strange New Respect for court-packing

[F.D. Wolf]

Democrats outnumbered Republicans 76-16 in the Senate and 333-89 in the House.

That the widely popular President Roosevelt, who had just won re-election to a third term 523-8 in the electoral college with 61% of the popular vote, had his scheme roundly rejected by that Congress gives you an idea of just how radical and odious it was considered at the time.

[Dan Schiavetta]

It just goes to show that this was not a political move by FRD. He was not seeking political advantage. He sincerely thought it was something that was for the good of the country, even though politically unpopular.

[Á àß äẞç ãþÇđ âÞ¢Đæ ǎB€Ðëf ảhf]

Hitler, Stalin, Mao, and despots throughout history had good intentions.

[Bob from Ohio]

"He was not seeking political advantage."

He was trying to get more justices so his policies would be upheld. That is certainly "seeking political advantage".

[Dan Schiavetta]

Not everything is political. Not even everything a politician does is political.

[Dilan Esper]

It's impossible to know motives for sure, but it's entirely possible that FDR liked having near-absolute power (a lot of people do), was extremely full of himself (see also his absolutely outrageous, irresponsible, and dishonest run for a 4th term), and hated the Supreme Court because he wanted dictatorial power (like several other Presidents did).

That doesn't at all decrease the accomplishments of either the New Deal or WW2, but he totally could have proposed court packing simply because he was a douchebag who felt nobody should dare check his power.

[Bob from Ohio]

"Not everything is political."

No, but a politician seeking to remove a check on his power is political, even if it is for the "good of the county" too.

Plus, what Dilan said.

[F.D. Wolf]

CORRECTION: It was FDR's second term, not third.

[Hugo S. Cunningham]

Also, SCotUS started letting some New Deal legislation stand, reducing the demand for packing. "The Supreme Court reads the election returns."

[Frank Drackman]

not normally a DemoKKKrat fan,
but didn't FDR sign off on executing Nazi Saboteurs?? (would Sleepy even be awake to sign?) get the A-Bomb built that his flunky HST used to end the WW2?? OK, not a big fan of Social Security, but it's still paying out some 80+ years later (even if it takes moving the entire working age population of May-He-Co to Amurica)
and he defended his Dog against the PMS-NBC's of the time..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qqt7b9veFo8