President Joe Biden made a bold prediction Wednesday — that he’ll appoint two Supreme Court justices in the next four years if reelected.
“Guess what? The next president, they’re going to be able to appoint a couple of justices,” Biden said in a Philadelphia campaign speech focused on black voters. “If, in fact, we’re able to change some of the justices when they retire and put in really progressive judges like we’ve always had, tell me that won’t change your life.”
However, that scenario would depend on two justices, all of whom are at least six years younger than Biden, stepping away from the role over the next four years.
The oldest judge on the Supreme Court today is Clarence Thomas, who turns 76 in June and will be 80 at the end of 2028. Biden is 81 today and would be 86 by the end of a second term.
The second-oldest justice on the high court, Samuel Alito, turned 74 in April. But both Alito and Thomas are considered part of the court’s conservative wing, and thus may be reluctant to voluntarily retire under a Democratic president.
Behind those two is Sonia Sotomayor, who is 69 and has already been subject to a heavy retirement push from liberal activists. Chief Justice John Roberts is also 69, though he is six months younger than Sotomayor.
Justice Elena Kagan is 64, and every other high court judge is below age 60.
Biden has outpaced former President Donald Trump in appointing judges overall, reaching 201 to date, or five more than Trump had at this point in his presidency.
Biden made much in his campaign speech about appointing the most recent Supreme Court justice, Ketanji Brown-Jackson.
“Because you voted, I was able to keep my commitment to appoint the first black woman on the United States Supreme Court,” he said to applause. “A promise made and a promise kept. And I appointed more black women to the federal circuit courts than every other president in American history combined.”
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He warned that Trump would appoint justices, should any spots come open during the next four years, who would erode rights.
“Trump justices are already gutting voting rights, overturning Roe, decimating affirmative action, and so much more,” Biden said. “Are we going to let that happen? We can’t.”
