Solutions for a Stronger Democracy

The 2024 election was the first time since the 1800s that the incumbent party lost the White House three times in a row. Public trust in government has plunged to historic lows. Citizens plainly feel left behind, economically unmoored, and dissatisfied with the government that serves them. Crisis can bring innovation. As Lincoln urged, we must “think anew.” What will matter most is not what we are against but what we are for. 

The Solutions series is a set of policy agendas. The Brennan Center began with proposals to combat corruption and reform the Supreme Court and will soon offer solutions focusing on executive power as well as voting and representation. We will also put forward ideas for constitutional change and more. Our solutions must match the scale of the challenges. They seek to address the problems of today, not 10 years ago or 1975. The project of reform must engage people from both parties, and no party. The best ideas are neither left nor right: They reflect the urgent desire of the disaffected middle. Throughout history, reform follows scandal and crisis — often, but not always. If we act, from today’s clashes can come a time of renewal and democratic rebirth.

Corruption | Supreme Court | Congress

Our government has entered a new and dangerous era of corruption. This is a reason it so often fails to work, a cause of the collapse of public trust. Corruption will be a central public issue going forward. The response must be not apathy but action.

The danger today is different from at any other time in our history. In the 19th century, government was marked by self-dealing and graft. Later, in the 20th century, politics was marred by the systemic corruption of the campaign finance system. Reforms curbed those abuses. Now they have come roaring back, at the same time. A recent Brennan Center poll found that a vast majority of Americans from across the political spectrum are hungry for solutions to these problems. 

The Supreme Court wields vast power with minimal accountability. Its actions shape the law, democratic institutions, and people’s lives. Yet it has no direct means of enforcing its decisions. Its authority depends emphatically on its credibility with the public.

Many may view the Court as impossible to reform. But it can be done. Article III of the Constitution, which establishes the federal judicial branch, leaves Congress with enormous control over the Court’s structure and operations. It has changed the makeup and rules of the Court many times before.

It is time for Congress to act once again and return the Court to its proper place in the U.S. constitutional system. We detail the urgently needed reforms that Congress must pass.

Political debates tend to focus on presidents, who for much of U.S. history have defined political eras. But an equally consequential story is unfolding inside Congress. The institution’s retreat from relevance in recent decades has created a vacuum filled by executive abuse and Supreme Court overreach. Its failure to advance progress has left Americans dejected about the potential for government to solve problems and address the issues they care about, from the environment to affordability, from immigration to health care.

Congress is no longer operating in the way our founders envisioned. As an inflated executive and overpowerful Supreme Court continue to throw our government out of balance, there has never been a more urgent need for Congress to assert its prerogatives and ensure its smooth functioning. We lay out what a reform agenda should include.