"I therefore recommend that the Congress provide measures... by which... when any judge of a Federal Court shall fail to retire upon reaching the age of seventy, a new member shall be appointed by the President... A part of the problem of obtaining a sufficient number of judges to dispose of cases is the capacity of the judges themselves. This brings forward the question of aged or infirm judges—a subject of delicacy and yet one which requires frank discussion." — FDR's Court-Packing Message to Congress (February 5, 1937)
FDR proposed this judicial reorganization plan in direct response to
- Acheck_circle
the Supreme Court's invalidation of the NRA, AAA, and other early New Deal programs
- B
the Court's refusal to hear cases involving the Bonus Army
- C
Justice Brandeis's retirement announcement
- D
the Court's overturning of Plessy v. Ferguson
Explanation
Decisions like Schechter (1935) and Butler (1936) struck down core New Deal statutes; Roosevelt sought to add up to six justices to secure favorable rulings.