America Urgently Needs State-Proposed Article V Constitutional Amendments
The Framers anticipated that the U.S. Constitution would need to be amended from time to time, what James Madison referred to as “to originate the amendment of errors.” They also recognized that the States would need the authority to restrain a power-hungry federal government and solve problems that Washington could not or would not address. For example, the federal government has been unwilling to stop their historic deficit spending, which is more than double their revenues. Our ballooning $14 Trillion national debt and borrowing is increasing by $4 Billion per day, or $13,200 per taxpayer per year! See our latest nation's debt totals at the U.S. Debt Clock.
Article V provides both Congress and the States with the exact same authority: to ‘propose’ new amendments. This limited authority to propose amendments should not be confused with a ‘Constitutional Convention,’ of which no mention, process or mechanism exists within the U.S. Constitution. There are those who have unfounded fears and oppose the legitimate use of Article V authority by the States. But is Congress somehow more trustworthy for proposing amendments than our State legislatures? By limiting its scope, a runaway convention is very unlikely and avoidable. Additionally, the ratification process and our system of checks and balances protect the Constitution from abuse by the amendment process.
The long historical use of an Article V type authority can be traced back as far as seventeenth-century England. Today's use of Article V authority by the States is endorsed by such Constitutional scholars as Professor Rob Natelson (Independence Institute), Nick Dranias (Goldwater Institute), Professor Randy Barnett (Georgetown University Law Center) and Russell L. Caplan (author of Constitutional Brinksmanship.) Even our Founders encouraged Article V use by the States:
James Madison, in Federalist No. 43, wrote about this important Article V authority, equally shared between Congress and the States, that should be used to correct ‘errors’ in our government and Constitution “It, moreover, equally enables the general and the State governments to originate the amendment of errors, as they may be pointed out by the experience on one side, or on the other.”
Alexander Hamilton, in the Federalist No. 85, wrote about how State legislatures should be ‘trusted’ to hold back an out-of-control central government “We may safely rely on the disposition of the State legislatures to erect barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.”
John Dickinson, in the “Fabius” essays, warned the States about negative consequences if they ‘did not’ use their authority to restrain an overbearing federal government “It will be their own faults, if the several States suffer the federal sovereignty to interfere in the things of their respective jurisdictions.”
Throughout our nation's history, the States have never exercised their Article V authority to meet in a convention for proposing and approving an amendment. Only Congress has proposed and forwarded amendments to the States for ratification. But other than the repeal of Prohibition, Congress has not submitted an amendment to curb its own expanding power and authority since 1789 when it sent the Bill of Rights to the States for ratification.Congress will not reform itself. It is up to the States and We the People to repair our out-of-control government and to restore our Constitutional Republic.
Proposed New Constitutional Amendments that We Support:
The National Debt Relief Amendment: “An increase in the federal debt requires approval from a majority of the legislatures of the separate States.”
The Repeal Amendment: "Any provision of law or regulation of the United States may be repealed by the several states, and such repeal shall be effective when the legislatures of two-thirds of the several states approve resolutions for this purpose that particularly describe the same provision or provisions of law or regulation to be repealed."
Other links worth visiting: Terrific Article V Videos, Runaway Convention?, Ryan Roadmap, A.L.E.C.
Please Help us personally meet with all fifty State legislatures and provide them with the needed leadership, to inform them about the Article V procedures, and to guide them through the processes of applying to Congress for a Convention and proposing and ratifying new amendments. Our team needs your financial support to help with the expenses for this historic undertaking. Please click the Paypal Donate button and help reform Washington. Even a few dollars will help, and your financial information remains completely confidential and protected through www.PayPal.com, an eBay company.