Could Supreme Court Justices Get Term Limits & An Ethics Code?
Venezuela’s questionable election; FDA approves blood test to detect colon cancer
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Good morning,
The US men's gymnastics team broke a 16-year Olympic drought yesterday! They are leaving with the bronze medal, but are celebrating like it’s gold.
🥉 Third is the best: "There's that one meme online where there's a guy on a podium popping champagne, biting the medal, taking all the pictures. And then they zoom out, and he's on third. But that's what it felt like today," said gymnast Paul Juda.
Japan won gold and China silver.
American Stephen Nedoroscik’s nearly perfect pommel horse routine pushed the team to the podium.
🇺🇸 The women’s team final is today at 12:15 pm ET, and will last about two hours.
And Simone Biles is set to have a major role in the competition, performing on all four apparatuses despite her recent calf injury.
Have a good one!
Mosheh, Jill, & Lauren
PS: Don’t forget to refer friends & family to subscribe to the Mo Newsletter… you could get free Mo News merch — DETAILS at the bottom of this newsletter!
📌 PRESIDENT BIDEN OUTLINES MAJOR REFORMS FOR THE HIGH COURT
With six months left in his term, President Biden isn’t done yet. On Monday, he laid out proposals to reform the Supreme Court. The three-tier approach calls on Congress to establish term limits and a code of ethics for the nine justices. He also outlined a constitutional amendment proposal to limit the high court’s recent presidential immunity ruling.
It comes at a time when public disapproval of the Supreme Court is near historic lows, but with a divided Congress and so little time before the election, there is no chance that the measures will be enacted. Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president, endorsed the reforms.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) called it a “dangerous” attempt to erode the rule of law.
CALL FOR CHANGE
Unlike every other constitutional democracy, Supreme Court justices in the United States are appointed for life and can choose to adhere (or not) to the court’s voluntary ethics rules. Since President Trump appointed three justices to the bench, the 6-to-3 conservative majority has ruled in a number of high-profile cases that have concerned Democrats. That includes decisions that overturned the constitutional right to abortions, loosened gun restrictions, limited federal agencies’ power, and gave former presidents immunity for official acts.
Here are Biden’s three proposals:
First, pass a constitutional amendment that would limit immunity for presidents.
History lesson: A constitutional amendment requires two-thirds votes in Congress or at a convention called for by two-thirds of the states, followed by ratification by three-fourths of the state legislatures.
Second, implement 18-year term limits for justices. It would also entail a president appointing a new justice every two years. It is unclear how this would be enacted, and whether it would also require a constitutional amendment.
Third, create a binding code of conduct that would require justices to disclose gifts, refrain from public political activity, and recuse themselves from cases in which they or their spouses have conflicts of interest.
Federal judges already have to abide by it, and Justice Elena Kagan recently voiced support for establishing an enforceable ethics code for the court.
Missing from the list: Adding justices to the court (aka “court packing”), as proposed by some Democrats.
The number of justices on the high court fluctuated before 1869.
Biden in a Washington Post op-ed wrote, “the court is mired in a crisis of ethics” and that “what is happening now is not normal, and it undermines the public’s confidence in the court’s decisions.”
WIDESPREAD CONSENSUS
About two-thirds of Americans support term limits for the high court and about 61% of Americans disapprove of the Supreme Court. But that wasn’t always the case. Just four years ago, that number was pretty much reversed.
What’s been going on? In the past couple years, there have been a number of decisions that led liberals to lose trust in the court, in addition to several ethics controversies that have lowered the court’s standing across the pendulum.
Justice Clarence Thomas took free trips and received gifts from a conservative mega-donor. His wife also urged Trump's top aide to make efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results.
Justice Samuel Alito’s home and beach house had flags associated with the far-right movement. After criticism from some members of Congress, Alito blamed his wife for flying them.
Then there are the decisions. From the Dobbs leak — when Americans found out that Roe v. Wade was set to be overturned before the decision was issued — to numerous decades-old precedents being overturned.
Bottom line: It’s unlikely Biden will get this ambitious package through a divided Congress. But the White House is looking to tap into the growing frustration and anger among Democrats about the court.
🇻🇪 VENEZUELA PROTESTS SURGE AFTER STRONGMAN MADURO DECLARES VICTORY DESPITE DISPUTED ELECTION RESULTS
Tens of thousands of Venezuelans took to the streets to protest President Nicolás Maduro’s claim that he won a third six-year term. The opposition says Sunday's presidential election was rigged and they have the data to prove it.
Maduro, who has led the country for a decade, was formally declared winner by the National Electoral Council (NEC), which is stacked with Maduro allies. It still hasn’t yet issued transparent results and final vote tallies from Sunday’s election.
On Monday night, the opposition coalition reported having obtained more than 70% of tally sheets from Sunday’s disputed election, and said that their candidate Edmundo González actually won nearly 70% of votes to Maduro’s 30%.
BACKGROUND: In his 11 years in office, President Maduro has sent the country into an economic tailspin, leading to 8 million people (1/4 of the country’s population) leaving.
THE NUMBERS
The NEC claimed Maduro won 51% of the vote and rival Edmundo González had 44%.
However the opposition leader María Corina Machado and González dispute that number. Bolstering their claims: US firm Edison Research conducted exit polls and found González winning by more than 30 percentage points.
Countries not buying it: The US and the European Union held off recognizing the election results. Even a number of typically friendly leftists Latin American leaders (including from Brazil and Colombia), appeared skeptical of the results.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, “We have serious concerns that the result announced does not reflect the will or the votes of the Venezuelan people.”
Who is supporting him: Russia, China, Iran and Cuba congratulated Maduro.
A COUNTRY IN CHAOS
Despite Venezuela’s location on top of the world’s largest oil reserves, since Maduro took control oil prices have plummeted, there have been widespread shortages of basic goods in the country, and hyperinflation hit 130,000% (for context, over the last few years, the US inflation rate peaked at 9.1% in June 2022).
NPR reports, “hyperinflation, repression, and violence” have led to an exodus of nearly 8 million citizens.
Many have settled in the US and neighboring Latin American countries.
The US has sanctioned and charged the Maduro regime with crimes ranging from drug trafficking to corruption and rights abuses. They lifted some sanctions in exchange for Maduro’s promise that he would hold a fair and free election this year.
⏳ SPEED READ
🚨NATION
📌 Trump agrees to give a victim interview to the FBI after assassination attempt (CBS NEWS)
📌 California firefighters make progress as wildfires push devastation and spread smoke across US West (AP)
📌 DC is seeing more divorces and custody battles over politics (AXIOS)
📌 The gender gap widens in the Harris-Trump contest (NBC NEWS)
🌎 AROUND THE WORLD
📌 French infrastructure targeted for a 2nd time during the Olympics, internet and phone cables cut across the country (BI)
📌 UK finance chief says public finances show $28 billion spending hole, cuts road and rail projects (CNBC)
📌 North Korean officials seek medicines for Kim’s obesity-related health problems, Seoul says (AP)
📌 Israeli ministers authorize Netanyahu retaliation against Hezbollah (BBC)
📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH
📌 Apple releases first preview of its long-awaited iPhone AI (CNBC)
📌 Sharks are congregating at a California beach. AI is trying to keep swimmers safe (CNN)
📌 FDA approves blood test to detect colon cancer for those at 'average risk' (ABC NEWS)
📌 McDonald's sales decline for first time in years as higher fast food prices hurt demand (FOX BUSINESS)
🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT
📌 Simone Biles to compete on all four events at Olympic team finals despite calf injury (ABC NEWS)
📌 Sinead O’Connor died of Pulmonary Disease and asthma, death report says (USA TODAY)
📌 Ron Goldman's father files claim against O.J. Simpson estate seeking $117 million (NBC NEWS)
📌 Triathlon cancels Olympic swim training for the second day over poor water quality in the Seine (AP)
🗓 ON THIS DAY: JULY 30
1956: President Dwight D. Eisenhower declared “In God We Trust” to be the US’s official motto. It was an attempt to contrast the US with the “godless Soviet Union.”
1965: President Lyndon B. Johnson established Medicare and Medicaid.
1976: Caitlyn Jenner, as Bruce Jenner, set a world record in the decathlon at the Montreal Summer Olympics.
1999: ‘Runaway Bride,' starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere, premiered in theaters.
