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December 13, 2008
Don't Mess With Our Constitution
U.S. now only 2 states away from rewriting Constitution
Sources:
American Policy Center...this site has the updates
A public policy organization has issued an urgent alert stating affirmative votes are needed from only two more states before a Constitutional Convention could be assembled in which "today's corrupt politicians and judges" could formally change the U.S. Constitution's "'problematic' provisions to reflect the philosophical and social mores of our contemporary society."
"Don't for one second doubt that delegates to a Con Con wouldn't revise the First Amendment into a government-controlled privilege, replace the 2nd Amendment with a 'collective' right to self-defense, and abolish the 4th, 5th, and 10th Amendments, and the rest of the Bill of Rights," said the warning from the American Policy Institute.
"Additions could include the non-existent separation of church and state, the 'right' to abortion and euthanasia, and much, much more," the group said.
The warning comes at a time when Barack Obama, who is to be voted the next president by the Electoral College Monday, has expressed his belief the U.S. Constitution needs to be interpreted through the lens of current events.
Tom DeWeese, who runs the center and its education and grassroots work, told WND the possibilities stunned him when he discovered lawmakers in Ohio are considering a call for a Constitutional Convention. He explained that 32 other states already have taken that vote, and only one more would be needed to require Congress to name convention delegates who then would have more power than Congress itself.
"The U.S. Constitution places no restriction on the purposes for which the states can call for a convention," the alert said. "If Ohio votes to call a Con Con, for whatever purpose, the United States will be only one state away from total destruction. And it's a safe bet that those who hate this nation, and all She stands for, are waiting to pounce upon this opportunity to re-write our Constitution."
As former Chief Justice Warren Burger said in a letter written to Phyllis Schlafly, President of Eagle Forum:
"...there is no effective way to limit or muzzle the actions of a Constitutional Convention. The convention could make its own rules and set its own agenda. Congress might try to limit the convention to one amendment or to one issue, but there is no way to assure that the convention would obey. After a convention is convened, it will be too late to stop the convention if we don't like its agenda. The meeting in 1787 ignored the limit placed by the confederation Congress..."
We were blessed in 1787; the Con Con delegates were the leaders of a freedom movement that had just cleansed this land of tyranny.
Today's corrupt politicians and judges would like nothing better than the ability to legally ignore the Constitution - to modify its "problematic" provisions to reflect the philosophical and socials mores of our contemporary society.
Our uniquely and purely American concept of individual rights, endowed by our Creator, would be quickly set aside as an anachronistic relic of a bygone era; replaced by new "collective" rights, awarded and enforced by government for the "common good".
The problems our nation faces are not a result of deficiencies in our Constitution; rather, they are the direct result of our disregard for that divinely-inspired document of liberty.
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Thank you God,.......HERE IS THE UPDATE
American Policy Center webiste
UPDATE: on the Ohio Legislature's activities since our Wednesday Sledgehammer Alert. Thankfully, that Sledgehammer alerted and activated people across the country to the very real and imminent threat that a Constitutional Convention might soon be called by Congress. You had a definite impact on the Ohio House, and gave us at least a temporary victory. But we're not finished, as you will see.
First and foremost: Thank you for a job well done!
Your efforts delivered a resounding shot across the bow of the Ohio House. According to our legislative contact, some Representatives received more hundreds of calls and emails on this subject. Good work! The House Judiciary Committee definitely felt the heat; the vote scheduled for Wednesday afternoon was cancelled! And there was no vote Thursday. Chairman Blessing said the vote listing was just a terrible mistake (and if you believe that...). Truth be told, your attention stopped them in their tracks!
About a dozen people gave testimony opposing HJR 8. With just 18 hours advance notice, we offer a loud "Bravo"! to those who stepped up to the task. Only Chairman Blessing spoke in favor of the bill, and his arguments were shattered by the other testimony.
Wild Thing's comment........
Isn't it something how no matter how many battles have been fought and won, we still have to keep at it. There truly is no peace without war is what this all has been teaching me. I heard that before as I was growing up, but these last years since Reagan left office I see how true it is.
We really can't ever give up fighting for our country. The left, the rino's, communists you name it are working 24/7 to change it.
Here is some excellent information I got from the two sources below.
Sources:
American Civil Rights Union...NOT the ACLU this is a different name and a different thing entirely. haha
To start over with a new constitution, they would first have to amend Article V to allow it.
“The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three-fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three-fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the First Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.” – Article V of the Constitution of the United States
The Founding Fathers provided two methods to propose amendments to the Constitution.
* The Congressional Method requires both Houses of Congress to approve a proposed amendment by a two-thirds vote. For over two hundred years, Americans have chosen to use this particular method to amend the Constitution, but it is not the only method established in Article V.
* The Convention Method requires that the legislatures of two-thirds of the states apply for an Article V Convention. According to Hamilton, Madison and other Founders, along with several US Supreme Court decisions, Congress is then obliged to call a Convention for Proposing Amendments. The states would send delegates to the Convention who would in turn propose amendments directly, bypassing Congress.
The Framers also provided two options for ratifying amendments, and they authorized Congress to decide which option was appropriate. The Supreme Court has ruled that Congress is limited to choosing one of the two options.
* The Legislative Option requires the legislatures of three-fourths of the states to ratify a proposed amendment.
* The Ratifying Convention Option requires the ratifying conventions of three-fourths of the states to ratify a proposed amendment. This option has been used only twice in our history: once to ratify the Constitution itself, and once to ratify the 21st Amendment repealing Prohibition.
One thing is perfectly clear: Article V gives the states assembled in convention the same proposal rights as Congress – no more, no less. And no matter whether an amendment originates with Congress or a Convention for Proposing Amendments, it must be ratified by three-fourths of the states before it can become part of the Constitution
The Framers’ Safety Valve
Fearing a tyrannical Congress would block the amendatory process, the Framers formulated Article V, wording it so as to fence off the Constitution from hostile or careless hands. They were careful to enumerate Three Forbidden Subjects:
1. Altering the arrangement known as slavery until 1808, a ban that has been lifted both by time and war.
2. Altering the arrangement of equal representation of the states in the Senate.
3. Writing a new constitution.
The last Forbidden Subject is implied, rather than explicit, like the first two. The Framers took great pains to avoid using the term “constitutional convention”. Instead, the Founding Document refers to a “Convention for proposing Amendments...as Part of this Constitution”. An Article V Convention is strictly limited to proposing amendments to the Constitution of 1787, and it is forbidden to compose a new constitution. No matter what amendments may be proposed, the Constitution must remain intact, else the actions of the Convention become unconstitutional.
Unless Article V is amended first to allow it, a Convention for Proposing Amendments can never become a true constitutional convention, i.e. it can never write a new constitution. And neither can Congress.
How It Would Work
The Founding Document is silent about a Convention for Proposing Amendments, except for establishing its existence and the criterion of its call by Congress. In 1965, a commission of the American Bar Association laid out what could be divined about the Framers’ intent. Then in 1992, after the commotion over the unexpected ratification of the 27th Amendment, originally proposed in 1789, Congress passed a bill reforming its involvement in the amendatory process, to include regulating the petitions for a Convention for Proposing Amendments and regulating the Convention itself.
* Petitions from state legislatures asking Congress to call a Convention for Proposing Amendments would have a shelf life of 7 years before expiring. The petition would have to request a subject or subjects for the Convention to consider, or it could request a general revision of the Constitution of 1787 – but not a new constitution!
* If the legislatures of two-thirds of the states petition Congress for a convention, and if the petitions are “fresh” because they are all less than 7 years old, and if the wording of those petitions is in agreement as to the subject(s) the Convention is asked to consider, then Congress would call the Convention, i.e. set the time and place.
* Baker v. Carr (“One Man/One Vote”) would apply. Delegates would be elected by the people, not appointed by a governor or state legislature. The model for the Convention would be similar to the Electoral College, where each congressional district would elect one delegate, and two delegates would be elected at large by each state.
* The petitioning language used by the states to request a Convention for Proposing Amendments would define the purview of the Convention. The Convention would not be allowed to address any subject outside that language.
* Upon convening, the Vice President would preside until the Convention could elect its own officers and establish its own rules of order.
* During the Convention, the Supreme Court would be available to hear cases generated by the Convention without going through the usual appellate process.
* Amendment proposals would go through deliberation and vigorous debate as would any amendment proposed in Congress. The Convention would set the bar for approving an amendment proposal to pass it on to the states for ratification. This could be a simple majority, a two-thirds majority, or anything that the Convention chose.
* Once the Convention exhausts the language of its purview and passes one, more than one, or no amendment proposals to the states for ratification, the Convention would adjourn permanently, and the delegates would become ordinary citizens again.
* Congress would then submit the proposed amendments to the states for ratification by deciding whether they should use the Legislative Option or the Ratifying Convention Option.
* If Congress chooses the Ratifying Convention Option, each state would hold an election for delegates to its state ratifying convention, which would be apportioned according to population.
* Each state legislature (or state ratifying convention, if Congress so chose) would vote up or down on each proposed amendment. If three-fourths of the states ratified an amendment proposal, it would become part of the Constitution.
Who Represents America?
Article I, Section 6 of the Constitution prevents a sitting congressman or senator from taking a seat as a delegate at a Convention for Proposing Amendments unless he first resigns his seat in Congress. It is safe to say that few would be willing to give up the permanent power of Congress for the transitory power of an Article V Convention.
So who would be elected by the states? Yourself, your friends, and your neighbors. All you have to do is run for Convention Delegate. There would be no need for a party endorsement or a campaign war chest. Anyone who raised a vast sum of money or took campaign contributions from vested interests would immediately fall under suspicion. After all, an Article V Convention is about the Constitution, not pork, perks and personal power.
Anyone who wishes to run for Convention Delegate will have to know his Constitution. He will have to take a stand on the subject(s) the Convention is to consider, and he will have to be able to defend that position in public. He won’t be able to hedge, waffle or use weasel words. Most importantly, the candidate for Convention Delegate will have to be a person of integrity, respected in his community.
The conservative caricature of an Article V Convention is a disorderly mob of statists from Massachusetts, welfare recipients from New York, and New Agers and illegal aliens from California. The liberal caricature of a convention is a gaggle of sexually maladjusted theocrats from Mississippi, American Gothics from Indiana, Johnny Rebs from South Carolina and bearskin-clad mountain men from Alaska.
Of course, the Convention will be representative of America at that time and place. All facets of America will be there, and that is as it should be. At an Article V Convention, everyone will have an opportunity to make his case, and everyone will have to lay his cards on the table. It's even possible that the Convention will send no amendment proposals to the states or that the states themselves will choose not to ratify.
So why go through all this?
There has long been fear of a Convention for Proposing Amendments because Americans have never used that tool. To most people, this is uncharted territory. But the Framers and Congress have provided a roadmap. Once the Convention meets, does its business and adjourns, Americans will understand that the Convention is just another tool provided by the Framers. Congress and the political parties will be on notice that the People have found another way.
For that is the beauty of the Constitution of the United States. It is designed to be changed by the People, either through their national government or – should that government fail to satisfy their mandate – through a second system of amendment. The Framers bequeathed the People two methods of amendment so that the government would always be under the People’s control.
....Thank you so much Mark for sending this article to me.
Posted by Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 05:45 AM
Comments
That's right--don't mess with the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Declaration of Independence. I have a little book I keep in my purse which has all 3 and I read it while waiting for my hubby to pick me up after work. I've been asked why I read it and I say it's because I need to keep this fresh because I'm an American and these are my rights and duties as an American. And I'm free to read whatever I want. I've had some say that's great and others scoff at it like it's a terrible thing to keep these literatures in our mind because we're going to lose them anyway, so we should all just give up.
Not me. I'm a Patriot child (I've found at least 2 Patriots--Joseph Williams of Horse Creek, NC and Thomas Roy Musick of Virginia) who served in the American Revolution. Joseph served for 7 years! He married Thomas' cousin Sarah Musick and their daughter Mary married my 3rd great grandfather Francis, who was fresh off the boat from England, dressed as a woman! My family does what it takes for freedom! Thomas Nelson is also a cousin line--he signed the Declaration and Lord Cornwallis took his house. That's the one his lackey surrendered his sword from.
These documents MUST stay as important as anything we have or will discover in the future. Our descendants need to know that we thought enough of them before they were born, to put these thoughts to paper and create a world of freedom, joy and happiness for all of us.
Posted by: Lynn at December 13, 2008 07:19 AM
It says if Ohio votes for the 'con con' that would leave but one mor state to jump on the bandwagon to re-write the constitution. The sitting governor of Ohio, Strickland is a loyal democrat and would follow obama to hell if he had to. strickland is the one responsible for investigating a private citizen, Joe the plumber. So Ohio following the orders of Obama would likely, very likely pull his state in line to go for a convention.
This would be the progressives dream come true. Re-writing the constitution in their own perverted image, along with the amendments listed as being deleted you can bet that free elections would be a thing of the past,too. It would no longer be President obama, but King obama. King Obama and his subjects of the late great United States of America.
However, I don't think it would get that far, I believe there would indeed be another civil war. They would have to void the Declaration of Independance too. This was the voluntary contract that brought the several states together.
Posted by: Mark at December 13, 2008 09:21 AM
This country has endured because of the constitution, not despite. It will not be defeated by an outside enemy, but from within by the very people that have sworn to uphold the constitution. These politicians are against the very thing that they have sworn to uphold and should be removed.
Here is another site you may wish to visit.
http://freedommarchusa.ning.com
I was invited to join by Screamineagle and only did so today. I have not thoroughly gone through the entire site yet due to our weather conditions of Thursday nights ice storm.
Bob A.
Posted by: Bob A at December 13, 2008 09:34 AM
The Constitution is the heart and soul of America's freedom and values. It is the reason America has risen to be the greatest country in the world.
To many of today's far from honorable politicians and powerful globalists, the Constitution is a barrier to their quest for a New World Order, One World government.
I had no idea that many state legislatures had called for a Constitutional Convention. This would be the end of the America we have known. There have already been assaults on the First Amendment by Congress, ie. the Fairness Doctrine and McCain Feingold. A Con Con would open the door for the socialists to bastardize the Constitution and strip it of it's limits on government.
This conference has to be prevented. The supporters know it and that is why it has been kept quiet. They know the public would be against it as we have been against the Immigration(amenesty) Bill and the big bailout proposals. The MSM as usual has supported the socialists and kept this alarming news quiet.
Another reason to buy more ammo.
Posted by: TomR at December 13, 2008 12:26 PM
If this last election proved anything it proved that the inmates are running the asylum. Too many people are either ignorant of or just philosophically opposed to the Constitution. Barack Obama thinks that it is flawed and needs radical change. His Kool-Aid drinkers blindly support whatever he wants. So, don't be surprised if a Con-Con slips through and we all get bit in the ass.
Posted by: Les at December 13, 2008 03:05 PM
Tom, is the State of Texas still a Republic ? Since Texas was once a Republic and was annexed in 1845, by the United States, did it surrender its soverneignty to become a state. I can't find that reference anywhere. If thats the case they could very well go back on their own, again, if this stupid Con con goes into effect.
Also you might be getting an influx of refugee Americans.
Posted by: Mark at December 13, 2008 03:40 PM
Mark - there are numerous rumors going around considering Texas' status. I don't know what is true and what isn't. Supposedly we have some kind of situation no other state has, but again I don't know for sure what it is.
One rumor says that Texas can divide into five states and therefore have 10 US Senators. Another rumor states that we could leave the Union and become a Republic again.
Whatever, I want to save America as it was during the 21st Century, but I more than casually worry that true socialism is the fate of America, and very soon.
These bailouts by the outgoing Bush Administration have advanced socialism a bunch in just a few weeks. Bush is a Texan(college in the Ivy League though), so I can't say that we are safe here from the rapid ooze of socialism.
Just load up on ammo and hide it.
Posted by: TomR at December 13, 2008 04:07 PM
Lynn, that was beautiful thank you for sharing about it.
You are a special person and friend.
Posted by: Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 07:36 PM
Mark, it is so scary. Thanks for this article so much and also for explaining too about Strickland etc. Obama would be set up so perfectly for his hate for the Constitution to pull this off.
My gut and heart tell me it would never get that far like you said too. We the people that truly love our country would fight back.
Posted by: Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 07:41 PM
Bob A., this is such a good way to say it, thank you.
"This country has endured because of the constitution, not despite"
Posted by: Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 07:43 PM
Tom, AMEN and Ditto that!!!
I wish more people felt like that.
"The Constitution is the heart and soul of America's freedom and values. It is the reason America has risen to be the greatest country in the world."
Posted by: Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 07:45 PM
Les, thank God for the internet. We would never know about these things if we only had the TV news.
Posted by: Wild Thing at December 13, 2008 07:49 PM
