{"id":20069,"date":"2016-01-13T13:02:39","date_gmt":"2016-01-13T18:02:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=20069"},"modified":"2020-06-07T15:25:27","modified_gmt":"2020-06-07T19:25:27","slug":"texas-governor-calls-for-article-v-convention","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/angry.net\/blog2\/?p=20069","title":{"rendered":"Texas Governor calls for Article V Convention"},"content":{"rendered":"

Good day all. A couple of years ago, I reviewed a book by conservative talk show host, Mark Levin called the Liberty Amendments<\/a>. In it he laid out a plan to amend the constitution using the Article V process to bypass congress.<\/p>\n

\"Stock<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

There has been a lot of discussions about calling for an Article V convention and a number of state legislatures are actively looking into doing just this. Last week, Governor Greg Abbott, (R-Texas) announced that he is supporting the idea of an Article V convention to pass several amendments to the Constitution and strip power away from the Federal Government. Here are the details from the Dallas News Trailblazers blog<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Gov. Greg Abbott, aiming to spark a national conversation about states\u2019 rights, said Friday that he wants Texas to lead the call for a convention to amend the U.S. Constitution and wrest power from a federal government \u201crun amok.\u201d <\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we are going to fight for, protect and hand on to the next generation, the freedom that [President] Reagan spoke of \u2026 then we have to take the lead to restore the rule of law in America,\u201d Abbott said during a speech at the Texas Public Policy Foundation\u2019s Policy Orientation that drew raucous applause from the conservative audience. He said he will ask lawmakers to pass a bill authorizing Texas to join other states calling for a Convention of States. <\/b><\/p>\n

First, lets read the text of Article V of the United States Constitution.<\/p>\n

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.<\/b><\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Basically, there are two ways to amend the Constitution. The usual way is to have bills to amend the Constitution passed in the House and Senate by a two thirds vote. Alternatively, the States can call for a convention to propose amendments, and then those amendments are sent to the states for the normal ratification process. What Governor Abbott and Mark Levin are seeking to do is bypass Congress since they would never pass through amendments that take power away from them.<\/p>\n

Along with the speech, Abbott released a nearly 70-page plan \u2013 part American civics lesson, part anti-Obama diatribe \u2013 detailing nine proposed constitutional amendments that he said would unravel the federal government\u2019s decades-long power grab and restore authority over economic regulation and other matters to the states. <\/b><\/p>\n

\u201cThe irony for our generation is that the threat to our Republic doesn\u2019t come just from foreign enemies, it comes, in part, from our very own leaders,\u201d Abbott said in a speech that took aim at President Obama, Congress and the judicial branch.<\/b><\/p>\n

Governor Abbott isn’t alone in that belief. We have a President who ignores Congress and the Constitutional separation of powers and simply issues Executive orders which he has no right to do. We also have a judiciary that has long since slipped off the rails and in many cases can’t even read plain language texts in a law. (Roberts recent Obamacare decision)<\/p>\n

In April, 27 active petitions had been filed<\/a> with Congress seeking a convention to amend the constitution to require that Congress adopt a balanced budget. <\/b>Congress would be forced to act once 34 states joined the effort. So far, Cruz hasn\u2019t endorsed the idea.<\/b><\/p>\n

Balancing the budget is something that every state is required to do. Only the Federal Government can run up a debt, which it has been doing with great gusto for decades. There are also proposals to limit the terms of Senators and Representatives, and possibly repeal the 17th<\/sup> Amendment<\/a> which allowed for the direct election of Senators rather then their appointment by each state’s legislatures.<\/p>\n

Since talk of an Article V convention took off a few years ago, the Political and Pundit classes have been saying what a bad idea this would be. They like to say that such a convention would rapidly go out of control and you could see a mess come out of it that essentially rewrites the entire constitution.<\/p>\n

In an editorial lambasting Rubio\u2019s plan<\/a>, <\/b>USA Today<\/b><\/em>‘<\/b><\/em>s editorial board warned that such a process could invite mayhem and further poison the nation\u2019s vitriolic political scene. It would also raise unresolved questions about the years-long process of ratification. And some conservatives who otherwise agree with Abbott and Rubio on many issues fear a convention could lead to greater restrictions on guns and money in politics and greater overall power for the federal government.<\/b><\/p>\n

\"Manure\"<\/a><\/p>\n

What the Political and Pundit classes aren’t considering is that anything that came out of an Article V convention would still have to go through the ratification process. Anything that radically changed things, such as revoking the 2nd<\/sup> Amendment, or the various sections of the 1st<\/sup> Amendment, would never make it through the state legislatures.<\/p>\n

It requires \u00be of the states to approve an amendment. Anything they tried to pass that restricted people’s rights would be hammered by those same people. State legislatures have to pay attention, since they are living next to the people who would be very upset. Trying to repeal the 2nd<\/sup> Amendment would be a good way for the legislators to find out what it was like to be tarred and feathered.<\/p>\n

Abbott, in his plan, dismisses many of those criticisms, saying that he would call for a limited scope to the convention.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Prohibit congress from regulating activity that occurs wholly within one state.<\/strong><\/p>\n