convention for proposing amendments

When We Amend the Constitution, Make Sure We Follow the U.S. Procedure, not the “Confederate States” Procedure 0
- September 19, 2016
People who claim that states may, through state law, dictate the wording of amendments to the interstate “convention for proposing amendments” are not accurately representing the system laid out in Article V of the U.S. Constitution. Rather, they are unwittingly advocating a system similar to the one adopted by the defunct “Confederate States of America.”
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Phyllis Schlafly, RIP 0
- September 6, 2016
I extend my sincere condolences for the death of Phyllis Schlafly to her family and followers. Mrs. Schlafly could rise to greatness. Her book, A Choice Not An Echo, became a standard of the conservative movement. Her successful campaign against the poorly drafted “Equal Rights Amendment” was a classic instance of how a single individual
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Statement by Rob Natelson on the “Compact for America’s” Latest Attack 0
- August 22, 2016
The authors affiliated with the Compact for America (CFA) would have us believe that states may use their ordinary law-making power to reduce the Constitution’s extended five-step amendment procedure to two steps, and that the courts will meekly acquiesce. Common sense tells us that the courts are unlikely to do so. The conclusion of common
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The 37th “Convention of States” Discovered!0
- August 21, 2016
Recently a professor teaching constitutional law at a prestigious university wrote in one of the nation’s top newspapers that we should oppose an Article V convention of states in part because the 1787 Constitutional Convention is “the only precedent we have.” As occurs too often among law professors, he obviously had not researched the subject
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Convention Rules from the “Assembly of State Legislatures:” Two Cheers Only 0
- August 17, 2016
This posting was updated on Jan. 18, 2023. In June, 2016 the Assembly of State Legislatures (ASL), a planning group of state lawmakers (now apparently defunct), issued suggested rules for an Article V Convention for Proposing Amendments. The rules were a commendable effort. But they also fell short in a number of ways, partly because
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More Founding-Era Evidence that Some State Functions Derive Only From the Constitution (With Some Comments on the Amendment Process)0
- August 12, 2016
In prior posts, I’ve discussed two key elements of constitutional law: 1. The Constitution grants some powers to persons and entities other than the federal government. These persons and entities include state legislatures, state governors, state conventions, the Article V “Convention for proposing Amendments,” Congress as a free-standing assembly, and the Electoral College. 2. When
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