In 1786, the fledgling United States was struggling under the Articles of Confederation. The central government could not tax, regulate trade, or enter in to treaties as an undivided nation. Something had to change. James Madison, grasping on the mood of the time, seized the opportunity to overturn the Articles of Confederation, which he thought completely inadequate for an effective federal government. Led by Madison, the founders then wrote and framed a completely new constitution. The convention of the states in Philadelphia became the Constitutional Convention of 1787, which completely altered the American form of government.
What happened in 1787 was for the best, and America was in good hands with her founding fathers at the helm. There are voices today who think we need our own 1787 switch-a-roo. But Given the rudderless political climate of modern day, one can only imagine the outcome of a new constitutional convention. Present American statesmen do not equate to the intellectual giants of 1787 that framed the American Constitution, nor is there a national mandate behind them.
Reasons cited by proponents of a convention of states include the need for a congressional term-limit and a balanced budget amendment. But these two sound principles of government are already in place.
Congressional term limits occur in every election. An informed and vigilant electorate can vote ineffectual or corrupt representatives out of office. Regarding a balanced budget amendment, Article I, Section 9, paragraph 7 of the Constitution states that, “No Money should be drawn from the Treasury, but in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of all public Money shall be published from time to time.”
Fiscal responsibility and common sense dictate that a budget should be balanced, whether specifically mandated by the Constitution or not. Thomas Jefferson wrote:
To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty or profusion and servitude…And the fore-horse of this frightful team is public debt. Taxation follows that, and in its train wretchedness and oppression…I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them
For many years Jefferson’s advice was followed, and the United States prospered and did not incur a persistently climbing and crushing national debt—that is, not until the federal government transcended its constitutional limitations and became a completely unrestrained leviathan in the mid-1960s following the advent of President Lyndon B. Johnson’s Great Society.
There are, of course, opportunities to amend the constitution without completely scrapping it. Article V states that Congress itself can propose an amendment “whenever two-thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary,” and once the amendment is “ratified by three-fourths of the several states” it becomes “Part of this Constitution.” This process (simpler than the other option, a convention of states) has been successfully used 27 previous times. The convention of states method, on the other hand, may not be restricted to a specific subject and could be used as a vehicle to overturn the entire Constitution.
Americans must be wary of a Convention of States, and trust in the wisdom of our founders.
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