Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

People Debate Mandatory Retirement At 75 For Congress And The Supreme Court

US Supreme court
white concrete building under white clouds during daytime
Photo by Adam Szuscik on Unsplash
Make us preferred on Google

When Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away in the fall of 2020, the United States panicked.

Namely, democrats and liberals were terrified by the prospect of another conservative judge on the United States Supreme Court, which already had a two-seat majority.

Then of course, there was the ongoing debate as to whether or not then-sitting president Donald Trump was entitled to pick another Supreme Court judge, as the 2020 presidential election was only weeks away.

Barack Obama was famously banned from appointing Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court owing to the fact that it was an election year, even though President Obama still had eight months left in his presidency.

Of course, RBG's death at age 87 also brought to the forefront an ongoing debate about whether there should be age limits for Supreme Court Justices.


Redditor houstontexas2022 was curious to hear where the Reddit community stood on this issue, leading them to ask:
"Would you support a mandatory retirement age of 75 for US House, US Senate & US Supreme Court Justices and if not why?"

If There Are Minimums, There Should Be Maximums

"Yes."

"We have age minimums."

"We need maximum age limits these people are making decisions for a future they won't be involved in."- mattjf22

Age Doesn't Always Equal Wisdom...

"I am 82 years old."

"Personally, I feel that anyone my age who still gets off on power needs to be kept away from normal people."

"But to the point of this post, the world has been run by old people since the beginning of our species, and just look at the place!"

"Yes, if you were intelligent to begin with your wisdom and common sense will increase with age, but so will your cynicism."

"If you were a young jacka**, you will become an old jacka** — and a hide-bound prejudiced old jackass at that."

"Give them a nice pension at 70, with the condition that if they mess with politics or government again they lose the pension."- SemichiSam

Would Have Greatly Affected The Last Two Elections

"70 and as for president no one can run over 65."

"FFS get with the program folks just retire."- Upstairs-Bid6513

Age Limits Are Only The Beginning

"Age requirement of 65, 2 term limit, Congress people serve 4 year instead of 2 year terms, and no campaigning more than 60 days before the election."- Deedoodleday

Term Limits First

"I feel like if we were to attach an age to it, it should be the age of retirement, but I feel like it would be more important to have term limits."

"Limits would fix almost all the same issues and address more, without arbitrarily deciding someone is too old to serve the state."- Askmyrkr

"Term limit is the way to go."- bob2235

Not Where Our Concerns Should Be...

"No, the problem isn't age, it's our election system."

"Politicians get old in office because it's so f*cking hard to vote them out!"

"End legal bribery, end FPTP, and we'll see a much healthier turnover in our political processes."- FountainsOfFluids

What Matters Is Their Qualifications And Abilities

"I'll be the contrarian."

"If you're good, you're good, regardless of age."

"I'll take a 75-year-old who is smarter, savvier, and better representative of my values than a 35-year-old."

"If you don't like them because they're senile, don't vote for them, that's all."

"Honestly, I feel the same about lower-age limits that aren't just the age of majority."- walkerintheworld

75 Is still Too Old...

"I would go even younger at 70."

"Sure that may mean we would lose Bernie, we would also be ditching McConnell, Pelosi, and the other fossils in office who refuse to address the problems we face."- Daryno90

Wrong Priorities

"Would rather see mandatory voting like Australia."- szthesquid

Wouldn't Change Anything

"No."

"Making politicians retire at some arbitrary age would not address the underlying problems our system has."- giope_1995

"What problem are you trying to solve by doing this?"

"Apparently, people want to be represented by ancient dinosaurs."- SideShow117

Defeats The Point Of Democracy

"No, absolutely not."

"Nor should there be a minimum age (apart from 18)."

"The point of a representative democracy is that the people vote for whom they want."

"Putting restrictions on who can run serves no purpose other than invalidating the votes of people you disagree with."

"It's not up to you or me to decide who is 'valid' as a candidate."

"That's the entire point of democracy."

"And to those of you that are convinced that if all the old people were just gone, then everyone would agree with you, you're ironically the exact kind of uninformed voter that you claim to be trying to prevent."- scottevil110

"No, because if there was a 76-year-old candidate I liked I would want the freedom to vote for them."

"Supporting things like this is so short-sighted."- tedesco455

In the heat of the moment, it's easy to make rash decisions about government and democracy.

Frustrating though it may be, it's important to remember progress is a slow, steady stream and doesn't come easily.

Also worth remembering, there are indeed two sides to most arguments, and far more can be resolved in a discussion than in an attack.

More from Trending/best-of-reddit

Jimmy Kimmel; Matthew McConaughey
Scott Kirkland/FXX via Getty Images; Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

Jimmy Kimmel Reveals NSFW Way Matthew McConaughey Consoled Him During Emmys—And It Actually Helped

Every awards show has an "In Memoriam" section, and every time it's a tear-jerker.

And at this year's Emmys, even funny man Jimmy Kimmel couldn't keep from crying, following the death of his childhood friend and frequent fixture on his show, Cleto Escobedo III.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joanna Wietrzyk
Fred Lee/Getty Images

HYROX World Champion Who Soiled Herself During Event Speaks Out To Apologize After Controversy

On September 12, Joanna Wietrzyk of Australia won in the Pro Women's solo division at HYROX Beijing 2026 and set off a literal sh*tstorm of controversy. Wietrzyk suffered acute gastrointestinal distress, soiling herself, partway through the course, but she chose to continue and finished in first place.

HYROX is a standardized global fitness-racing series that combines eight kilometers of running with eight functional workout stations. Participants run one kilometer, then complete one of the functional workout stations, then repeat this sequence eight times alongside the other competitors in their division.

Keep ReadingShow less
David Letterman; Donald Trump
Amy Sussman/WireImage; Mandel Ngan/AFP via Getty Images

David Letterman's Resurfaced Warning About The Future Of The Media Under 'Authoritarian' Trump Is Eerily Accurate

A resurfaced clip of former late-night host David Letterman has gone viral for a prescient warning he gave to the media about the perils of being a "suck up" to an "authoritarian regime" like the Trump administration.

Letterman originally made those remarks during an appearance last year at The Atlantic Festival. He criticized the Trump administration and cautioned media outlets while reflecting on the administration's efforts to silence Letterman's fellow late-night hosts Jimmy Kimmel and Stephen Colbert.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Dave Lowe
60 Minutes

Lifelong Texas Republican Goes Viral With Criticism Of Proposed AI Data Center On '60 Minutes'—And Everyone's Saying The Same Thing

Dave Lowe, a resident of Red Oak, Texas, and a "lifelong conservative Republican," went viral for his reaction to a proposed AI data center in his community, giving 60 Minutes reporters a response observers say perfectly sums up conservative thinking.

Data centers—vast, industrial buildings packed with servers, networking hardware, and storage systems—form the physical backbone of modern computing.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of JD Vance at rally in North Carolina
C-SPAN

Vance Dragged After 'Accidentally' Coming Up With Juvenile Nickname For The Far Left In Cringey Speech

Vice President JD Vance was widely mocked online after he misspoke while criticizing the "far left" at a campaign rally for MAGA North Carolina Senate candidate Michael Whatley.

Vance was in the city of Greensboro to encourage voters to vote for one of the MAGA candidates that has been endorsed by the White House. Whatley was previously the chair of the Republican National Committee from 2024 to 2025.

Keep ReadingShow less