Unconstitutional? Extra-Constitutional? What’s the difference?
An extra-constitutional action may be legal or illegal.
How the False Stories Against An Amendments Convention Got Started
Opponents then — like their successors today — claimed they were protecting the Constitution. But what they actually were (and are) doing is protecting judges and politicians who abuse their positions by changing constitutional rules without following the normal democratic process.
Responding to Fears of an Amendments Convention
Of course, the political establishment doesn’t want you to exercise this constitutional right. So they use the same tactics vote-suppressors use: disinformation and fear.
Correcting Hillary Clinton’s Misconceptions About Those Favoring An Amendments Convention
None of the amendment campaigns . . . favors the open-ended convention needed for radical change. All of their model legislative applications severely limit the convention’s scope.
Where the Constitution’s Word “Convention” Came From
Fortunately, by the time the Constitution was written, this verbal confusion had been pretty much been sorted out.
Activists Can Spend Their Time Better Than Trying to Resurrect the Zombie “Equal Rights Amendment”
[I]t became clear the ERA was a poorly-drafted measure that would do little for women’s rights. It would have transferred massive amounts of power away from local governments and elected representatives, handing it instead to lawyers, judges, and bureaucrats.
Drafting a Balanced Budget Amendment: It’s tougher than you might think
Of course, it is one thing to criticize, but another to try to craft something better.
The last convention of states ever held? It Centered on the Upper Colorado River
“This latest convention of states operated according to standard convention of states protocols.”
Fake News: How Leading Liberal Newspapers Spread the “Runaway Convention” Story
Although there were scattered antecedents, “runaway convention” claims and certain associated myths were first distributed widely during the 1960s and 1970s. In a previous Article V Information Center study, I documented how those stories were publicized by leading opinion-molders in the national liberal establishment. Their goal was to disable the Article V convention process to […]
The Convention of States in American History
In this short essay, constitutional historian Rob Natelson thumbnails the three-centuries long history of “conventions of the states.” When delegations from the states assemble in Phoenix, Arizona later this year, they will be basking in a long and rich American tradition. As far back as 1677, British colonies in North America sent “commissioners” (delegates) to […]
Convention Rules for a Convention of the States
The convention of the states meeting in Phoenix, Arizona in September will need a set of rules. Moreover, that convention will be engaged in further rule-writing because the Arizona Legislature called it partly to suggest rules for a prospective Article V Convention for Proposing Amendments. I suggest the planners start with the Model Rules provided […]
How Progressives Promoted the “Runaway Convention” Myth To Protect the “Warren Court’s” Judicial Activism
You may have heard alarms that if we hold a national convention for proposing constitutional amendments the gathering would be an uncontrollable constitutional convention (“con-con”) that could propose anything at all. The claim is called the “runaway scenario.” It has almost no basis in history or law. But it has long frightened Americans away from […]
