Constitutional Convention Concept Opens Can Of Worms

We rarely report on bills in state legislatures unless they have the ability to have an impact on the rest of the nation. On the whole, state legislators are some of the most questionable people in existence. Sure, there are exceptions here and there, but overall state legislators have an exaggerated concept of their power and their ability to conform the world to their narrow way of thinking. We’re not exactly fond of most of them. Their bills have too high of a WTF factor.

One of the changes we’re seeing this year, however, is the attempt on the part of Republicans, specifically Republican governors, to use their state legislature in an attempt to sway or force national action. We see this not only in regard to the ongoing abortion debate but also in the ability of trans women to play women’s sports and require local police to assist in immigration raids.

Last night, the Indiana state legislature became the 11th such body to call for a Constitutional Convention. The idea behind the move is to force a vote on term limits since Congress itself is too stuck on its own power to take up the idea for itself. The concept itself has merit. The majority of Americans have favored term limits for Congress for over 30 years. Most members of Congress, if asked individually, will tell you that they support term limits. Yet, the few bills ever submitted never made it to a floor vote. Recently, no one has even tried to raise the issue.

This is where the states are taking matters into their own hands. Article V of the Constitution allows states to force a Constitutional Convention as long as 34 of the 50 states agree to it. On one hand, it sounds like a great idea, until you realize that it isn’t. There’s a damn good reason that never, in the history of the Constitution, has Article V ever been fully invoked.

The last time states attempted this maneuver was in 2017. There was a list of items the states wanted discussed. That effort fell short well before the minimum number of states passed supporting resolutions. The problem then was the same as the problem now. The reason for calling the Constitutional Convention is irrelevant. Once such a Convention convenes, anything can be brought up by any participating member.

Hello, welcome to one giant can of worms.

Could the Convention approve an amendment for overturning the right of women, people of color, and indigenous people to vote? Yes.

Could the Convention approve an amendment giving Congress or the President authoritarian rule over everything? Yes.

Could the Convention approve an amendment requiring restaurants to serve nothing but pizza on Fridays? In theory, yes. There are no guardrails on this road. Anything and everything is open for discussion.

To be fair, there is no guarantee that such a body of legislators could be successful no matter what the topic might be. Any proposed amendment would still require the approval of state legislators and 38 of the state’s bodies would have to agree to the measure. The selfishness and power-hungry nature of state legislatures undermines their ability to agree on much of anything, typically dooming any chance for approval.

The amendment process is deliberately difficult. It requires supermajorities (two-thirds for proposal, three-fourths for ratification) to ensure broad consensus. Sure, the US Constitution is supposed to be a ‘living’ document that responds to the changing needs of the country, but the Framers were wise in setting a high bar to ensure that ridiculous and petty efforts by a handful of idiots could not make their way into constitutional law.

The concept of term limits has merit. We’ve seen in recent matters how a handful of octagenarians in the Senate can ruin helpful pieces of legislation. People at high risk for their seventh stroke probably shouldn’t be deciding the course of the nation.

Calling a Constitutional Convention, however, could be catastrophic. With the US already taking an authoritative approach to the Executive Branch, such a move could too easily spell the end of the democracy. No thanks, we’ll find a different way to get term limits.