The Crisis We’re In

I’m going to level with you. We are in the middle of a constitutional crisis—and not the kind you can ignore by turning off the news. This isn’t about party politics or policy differences. This is about power. Raw, unchecked, weaponized power. And the people wielding it aren’t in the White House or Congress. They wear black robes. They sit on the highest court in the land. And right now, they are rewriting the rules of our democracy to serve a permanent, ultra-conservative minority.

How the Supreme Court Got Hijacked

Let’s be blunt: The current 6-3 conservative majority on the Supreme Court has gone rogue. These justices weren’t just randomly plucked off a judicial tree. They were grown in a right-wing hothouse known as the Federalist Society—an ideological factory that’s been churning out originalist, ultra-conservative judges for decades. And they’re not just interpreting the Constitution. They’re using it like a cudgel to bludgeon progress, strip away rights, and drag this country backwards.

What Happened to 200 Years of Precedent?

You want to talk about precedent? About stability? About 200 years of legal tradition? Let’s start with this: for two centuries, American jurisprudence has operated under the understanding that the Constitution is a living document—one designed to adapt to the needs of a changing world. Chief Justice John Marshall said it best back in 1819: the Constitution was “intended to endure for ages to come.” But that idea is now on life support.

Do you choose evolution or the 250-year-old intent of wealthy white slave-owning men who would laugh at the idea of Women and People of Color voting?

The Rise of Originalism and Judicial Necromancy

The six conservatives on this Court—Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, Barrett, and yes, even Chief Justice Roberts when it suits him—have declared war on the idea that the Constitution can evolve. They want to lock us into an 18th-century rulebook written by a handful of privileged white men, many of whom owned slaves and had no concept of a modern multicultural democracy. They call this “originalism.” I call it judicial necromancy—digging up the ghosts of the past and giving them power over the living.

Originalism Isn’t Law—It’s Intellectual Laziness Disguised as Purity

Let’s be real: Originalism is not about fidelity to the Founders. It’s about control. It’s about finding a way to say, “We don’t need to think anymore. We don’t need to reason or compromise or evolve. Just give me the rulebook and I’ll follow it blindly.” That mindset is how you end up with people trying to govern a 21st-century democracy using 18th-century tools. It’s like insisting everyone go back to driving a Model T because that’s the car Henry Ford made first. Nostalgia is not a political philosophy. It’s a disease—and this Court is infected.

The Consequences Are Real. And They’re Already Here.

But this isn’t just about philosophy. It’s about consequences. And if we don’t act, those consequences are going to be devastating. Think I’m being dramatic? Let’s talk about Roe v. Wade. For nearly fifty years, the right to an abortion was settled law. Not perfect, not universal, but settled. Then along came the Trump Court, stacked with justices who had all but promised to overturn it—and they did. Over 50 years of precedent, gone. Millions of women thrown back into a patchwork nightmare of state-level bans and forced births. Welcome to Gilead, folks. Margaret Atwood wasn’t writing fiction. She was writing prophecy.

A Trail of Destruction

This is what happens when a rogue Court starts legislating from the bench while pretending not to. And Roe was just the beginning. Voting rights? Gutted. Environmental protections? Slashed. Gun control? Blown away. LGBTQ rights? Hanging by a thread. Church and state? Blurring fast. And every time they swing that gavel, they do it with the smug assurance that no one can touch them.

No Accountability. No Ethics. No End in Sight.

And they’re right—at least for now. Because unlike the President or Congress, Supreme Court justices have life tenure. No term limits. No real accountability. No binding code of ethics. Clarence Thomas can take luxury vacations on a billionaire’s dime without disclosing it. Alito can fly on private jets to hang with the ultra-wealthy. And they just keep ruling—not in the judicial sense, but in the dictatorial one—year after year, decade after decade, like kings in robes with no throne to answer to.

The quickest way for a species to die out is to stop evolving. The same goes for governments and the documents that guide them.

So What Do We Do About It?

We fight. And we fix it. Not with violence or vengeance—but with vision, strategy, and action.

Fix #1: Term Limits

Let’s start with the low-hanging fruit: term limits.

No other major democracy gives their high court judges life tenure. Most retire around 70. We could easily set 18-year term limits, staggered so each president gets two picks per term. It would depoliticize the confirmation process and prevent any one president from stacking the Court for a generation. No constitutional amendment needed—just smart legislation that reclassifies justices to “senior status” after their term expires.

Fix #2: Court Expansion

Next up: Court expansion. Yeah, I said it. Call it court-packing if you want. I call it course (court) correction. The Constitution doesn’t say how many justices there should be. We’ve changed the number seven times. It’s been nine since 1869. We’ve got 13 federal circuits. Why not 13 justices? That’s what the Judiciary Act of 2023 proposes. If Republicans can steal a seat from Obama and ram through Barrett a week before an election, don’t lecture me about tradition.

Fix #3: Jurisdiction Stripping

Then there’s jurisdiction stripping—limiting what kinds of cases the Court is allowed to hear. Congress has this power under Article III. They’ve used it before. They could use it again. Want to pass a national abortion rights law? Add a clause that says the Supreme Court can’t touch it. Want to stop the Court from dismantling voting rights? Same deal.

Fix #4: Super-Majority to Strike Down Laws

We should also consider a super-majority rule for striking down federal laws. Make it 7 out of 9, or 10 out of 13 if we expand the Court. If a law is really unconstitutional, it shouldn’t be controversial. This would prevent a slim ideological majority from overturning the will of the people.

Fix #5: Ethics Reform

And let’s talk about ethics. It is insane that Supreme Court justices don’t have to follow a formal code of conduct. Every other federal judge does. This has to change. We need mandatory disclosures, recusal standards, and an independent ethics board. Let’s shine a light on the dark money corrupting our highest bench.

Other Countries Do It Better—Why Can’t We?

But why stop there? Other countries have solved this. Germany’s constitutional court has term limits. Canada allows Parliament to override certain court decisions. France appoints justices through multiple branches of government. We can learn from them. We’re not stuck. We’re just scared. And it’s time we got over it.

Radical? Maybe. Necessary? Absolutely.

Look—I know this sounds radical. But what’s more radical: changing the rules to save democracy, or letting six unelected ideologues rewrite the Constitution in their own image? DO NOT let the mamby-pamby Democrats slide on this. No half-measures. Get tough, stand firm, and remember who rules the roost. We do!

Let’s Reclaim the Constitution

We don’t need to burn it all down. We need to build it back better. Smarter. Fairer. We need to unstack the deck, balance the scales, and reclaim a Court that serves the people—not the party that gamed the system.

The Constitution isn’t dead. It’s alive—as long as we are.

ATTENTION Wolverines: What You Can Do Right Now!

Let’s stop wringing our hands and start organizing. Call your reps. Demand term limits. Support court expansion. Push for ethics reform. And most of all—vote. Because every seat in Congress is a lever. And if we pull enough of them, we can shift the whole damn system.

This Nazified Court isn’t the final word. WE ARE!

And if we don’t act now, the next word might be goodbye.

(This post is the first part of No Place for Political Wimps’ Supreme Court Reform Series. If you found it useful, share it. If it made you mad, good. That means you’re paying attention. Now let’s do something about it.)

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