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Biden signed an executive order in April creating the
commission. It held its first meeting the following month.
The commission is looking at the issue of expanding beyond the
current nine justices or creating a fixed term for justices
instead of lifetime appointments.
The Supreme Court currently has a 6-3 conservative majority
after Biden's Republican predecessor Donald Trump made three
appointments during four years in office. Trump in 2017 was able
to fill a vacancy opened up when his predecessor Barack Obama
was in office because Senate Republicans in 2016 blocked
consideration of Obama's nominee to the post, current Attorney
General Merrick Garland.
The Supreme Court during its current term is considering major
cases in which its conservative majority could restrict abortion
rights and widen gun rights, alarming liberals.
Republicans have opposed the idea of expanding the number of
justices, which they call "court packing." Democrats have said
the current makeup of the court no longer represents the will of
the U.S. electorate.
The last time court expansion was seriously pursued was in the
1930s by Democratic President Franklin Roosevelt after a
conservative court impeded his policies aimed at lifting America
out of the Great Depression.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki told reporters at her daily
briefing that the commission's draft report will be released on
Thursday with an eye toward submitting its final report to Biden
in mid-November.
(Reporting by Alexandra Alper and Steve Holland; Editing by Will
Dunham and Heather Timmons)
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