Press Statement
For Immediate Release: 10.24.24
Contact: John Manning, media@firstliberty.org
Direct: 972-941-4453
Religious Liberty Expert Calls on Candidates to Clairfy Position on Court Packing Prior to Election
Polling nationwide has shown overwhelming majority of Americans reject changes to court, seen as upsetting judicial independence, integrity.
Washington, DC—Statement from Kelly Shackelford, President, CEO, and Chief Counsel for First Liberty Institute, regarding comments by presidential candidate Kamala Harris on CNN indicating that she is open to adding additional justices to the U.S. Supreme Court:
Transforming the Supreme Court into another partisan body would destroy the independence of the judiciary and threaten the civil liberties of all Americans. American voters deserve to know where all the presidential candidates stand on court packing.
At a CNN town hall on October 23, a voter asked Harris if she would be open to expanding the number of justices on the U.S. Supreme Court. Harris indicated openness to such a proposition, saying, “I do believe there should be some kind of reform of the Court.” Harris has also previously said she is “open” to court packing.
Polling conducted of likely voters nationwide August 12-15 found that 59 percent of Americans oppose expanding the court, or “court packing.” Sixty-three percent of those polled oppose recent politically motivated attacks on the Supreme Court. 87 percent of Americans believe that an independent judiciary is crucial to our civil liberties First Liberty, the nation’s premier law firm dedicated exclusively to religious liberty, commissioned the poll.
Learn more at supremecoup.com.
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About First Liberty Institute
First Liberty Institute is the largest legal organization in the nation dedicated exclusively to defending religious freedom for all Americans.
To arrange an interview, contact John Manning at media@firstliberty.org or by calling 972-941-4453.