In a recent interview on CNN’s “State of the Union,” Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a member of the progressive group known as the “Squad,” criticized the U.S. Supreme Court for what she described as an “abuse of power.” Ocasio-Cortez expressed her concern following several landmark decisions made by the court, including rulings against affirmative action and President Biden’s student loan debt plan. She proposed measures such as impeachment and subpoenas to limit the justices’ power and called for a reevaluation of judicial review as a check on the courts.
Ocasio-Cortez argued that the Supreme Court had overreached its authority with decisions that she and other Democrats viewed as attacks on the left. She claimed that these rulings signaled a dangerous trend toward authoritarianism and an excessive concentration of power within the judiciary. The congresswoman cited statements from Justice Elena Kagan, who she claimed had expressed concerns about the court assuming the role of a legislature.
“These are the types of rulings that signal a dangerous creep toward authoritarianism and centralization of power in the courts,” Ocasio-Cortez said Sunday. “In fact, we have members of the court themselves with Justice Elena Kagan saying that the court is beginning to assume the power of a legislature.”
The representative has been a vocal advocate for court-packing and limiting the court’s power. She suggested that subpoenas and impeachment should be considered if Chief Justice Roberts failed to voluntarily appear before Congress for an investigation. Ocasio-Cortez also called for more binding ethics guidelines and stricter oversight of the Supreme Court, alleging instances of potential misconduct and abuse of power, including Justice Clarence Thomas’ refusal to recuse himself from cases involving his wife related to the January 6th events.
While Ocasio-Cortez has been pushing for increased scrutiny and changes to the Supreme Court, President Biden recently clarified his position against expanding the court, citing concerns about politicization. He suggested that some justices may be realizing the questioning of their legitimacy and expressed optimism that the court would respond accordingly.
The congresswoman drew attention on social media after the court’s affirmative action ruling, where she criticized the court’s stance on “ludicrous ‘colorblindness’ claims” and its failure to address legacy admissions. However, critics pointed out that the issue of legacy admissions was not before the court during that particular ruling.
