When asked if he was open to increasing the number of Justices on the Supreme Court, Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden refused to answer and said that he would give an opinion before Election Day.
“I have not been a fan of court packing, because then they can just generate what happens, whoever wins just keeps moving in a way that is inconsistent with what is going to be manageable,” Biden said. (RELATED: ‘You’ll Know…When The Election Is Over’: Biden Refuses Again To Say Whether He Will Pack The Court)
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“So you’re still not a fan?” host George Stephanopoulos asked. Biden responded that while he is “not a fan,” of packing the court, “it depends on how this turns out.”
“Not how he wins, but how it’s handled,” Biden continued. “But there’s a number of things that are going to be coming up and there’s going to be a lot of discussion about other alternatives as well.”
The former Vice President said that his answer depends on how the nomination process of Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett plays out.
“It depends on how much they rush this,” Biden said. “Here you got a lot of people not being able to pay their mortgage, not being able to put food on the table, not being able to keep their business open, not being able to do anything to deal with what’s going on in terms of the economy as a consequence of COVID, and they have no time to deal with that, but they have time to rush this through.”
When asked if he would be open to expanding the size of the court after the vote on Barrett’s nomination, which is expected around October 30, Biden said he is “open to considering what happens from that point on.”
Voters “do have a right to know” where he stands on court packing before they cast their vote, Biden added.
“So you’ll come out with a clear position before election day?” Stephanopoulos asked. “Yes,” Biden answered. “Depending on how they handle this.”
The question of court packing arose after the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and President Trump’s subsequent nomination of Amy Coney Barrett to fill the seat. During his presidential campaign, Biden has repeatedly refused to give an answer on whether or not he would pack the Supreme Court, despite saying in the past that he was not in favor of it. The former Vice President said Tuesday that he is “not a fan of court packing.”