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How the States Can Save America | 5 Minute Video

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Washington is gigantic, corrupt, and unaccountable. Can it be fixed? Learn more about the Convention of States and Article V of the Constitution. Jim DeMint, former Senator from South Carolina, explains.
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Script:

The federal government has become a lumbering giant. With each passing year, it gets bigger and scarier. In 1965, Washington was 761 billion dollars big (adjusted for inflation). In 2016… it was 3.5 trillion – five times the size.

If the government spent only the money it collected in taxes, that would be one thing. But it always spends more—which is why we’re $20 trillion dollars in debt. That’s 13 zeroes. Count ‘em: Thirteen.

But the crazy spending isn’t even the worst of it. Washington is involved in every part of our lives.

Think about anything you do, from driving your car to buying your groceries to mowing your lawn. Whatever it is—your education, your job, your health— the government has its hands on your shoulder, if not on your throat.

As a congressman and senator for 14 years, I know this only too well.

So, how do we cut this giant down to size? Is it even possible?

Yes. And the amazing thing is, the answer is right in front of us.

The Founding Fathers, in their wisdom, foresaw the situation we find ourselves in today. They wrote into the Constitution a way to repair Washington…not from the inside, because that will never happen but from the outside, where it might. It’s right there in Article 5. Most people are familiar with the first part: “The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution…”

All 27 Amendments we have now started this way. Congress proposed them and at least three-quarters of the states ratified them.

But is this the only way to amend the Constitution?

Well, let’s read the next clause: It says that Congress, “…on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, shall call a convention for proposing amendments…”

Did you catch that?

Congress must call a convention to amend the Constitution if two-thirds of the states—that’s 34 states—demand it.

The time has come to demand it.

The time has come to propose amendments that will restore
meaningful limits on federal power and authority.

The time has come for a convention of states.

Here’s how it would work: Once the 34 states call a convention, all 50 states send a delegate to represent their interests. For any constitutional amendments proposed, each state gets one vote. And an amendment only passes out of the convention and to the states for ratification if a majority of the states’ delegates vote in the affirmative. In this scenario, Congress has no say. It is completely in the hands of the states, which means it’s a whole lot closer to the hands of the people.

We’ve never once amended the Constitution this way—but that doesn’t mean we can’t.

But, you might ask, doesn’t this open the door to rewriting the entire Constitution?

Antonin Scalia, the late Supreme Court justice, acknowledged this risk, but regarded it as a “minimal” and “reasonable” one. Why? Because to be ratified, a proposed amendment would need the approval of 38 states. That’s a high bar. Thirty-eight states would never agree to something radical like abolishing freedom of speech. “The Founders,” Scalia said, “knew the Congress would be unwilling to give attention to many issues the people are concerned with, particularly those involving restrictions on the federal government’s own power… [so] they provided the convention [of states] as a remedy.”

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36 Comments

  1. The worst part is Republicans pretend to want smaller government, but they also wanna force Christianity on schools, force women to obey archaic laws, force marriage to be restricted and Christian, and force anyone who disagrees to be prosecuted. Republicans play to the image of small government but in action they want bigger and more imposing government.

  2. Charley Reese's final column for the Orlando Sentinel… He has been a journalist for 49 years. He is retiring and this is HIS LAST COLUMN.

    This is about as clear and easy to understand as it can be. The article below is completely neutral, neither anti-republican nor democrat. Charlie Reese, a retired reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, has hit the nail directly on the head, defining clearly who it is that in the final analysis must assume responsibility for the judgments made that impact each one of us every day. Worth the time. Worth remembering!

    545 vs. 300,000,000 People

    -By Charlie Reese

    Politicians are the only people in the world who

    create problems and then campaign against them.

    Have you ever wondered, if both the Democrats and the Republicans are against deficits, WHY do we have A

    Have you ever wondered, if all the politicians are against inflation and high taxes, WHY do we have inflation and high taxes?

    You and I don't propose a federal budget. The President does.

    You and I don't have the Constitutional authority to vote appropriations. The House of Representatives does.

    You and I don't write the tax code, Congress does.

    You and I don't set fiscal policy, Congress does.

    You and I don't control monetary policy, the Federal Reserve Bank does.

    One hundred senators, 435 congressmen, one President, and nine Supreme Court justices equates to 545 human beings out of the 300 million are directly, legally, morally, and individually responsible for the domestic problems that plague this country.

    I excluded the members of the Federal Reserve Board because the Congress created that problem. In 1913, Congress delegated its Constitutional duty to provide a sound currency to a federally chartered, but private, central bank.

    I excluded all the special interests and lobbyists for a sound reason. They have no legal authority. They have no ability to coerce a senator, a congressman, or a President to do one cotton-picking thing. I don't care if they offer a politician $1 million dollars in cash. The politician has the power to accept or reject it. No matter what the lobbyist promises, it is the legislator's responsibility to determine how he votes.

    Those 545 human beings spend much of their energy convincing you that what they did is not their fault. They cooperate in this common con regardless of party.

    What separates a politician from a normal human being is an excessive amount of gall. No normal human being would have the gall of a Speaker, who stood up and criticized the President for creating deficits. (The President can only propose a budget. He cannot force the Congress to accept it.)

    The Constitution, which is the supreme law of the land, gives sole responsibility to the House of Representatives for originating and approving appropriations and taxes. Who is the speaker of the House? (John Boehner. He is the leader of the majority party. He and fellow House members, not the President, can approve any budget they want. ) If the President vetoes it, they can pass it over his veto if they agree to. [The House has passed a budget but the Senate has not approved a budget in over three years. The President's proposed budgets have gotten almost unanimous ejections in the Senate in that time. ]

    It seems inconceivable to me that a nation of 300 million cannot replace545 people who stand convicted — by present facts — of incompetence and irresponsibility. I can't think of a single domestic problem that is not

    traceable directly to those 545 people. When you fully grasp the plain truth that 545 people exercise the power of the federal government, then it must follow that what exists is what they want to exist.

    If the tax code is unfair, it's because they want it unfair.

    If the budget is in the red, it's because they want it in the red.

    If the Army & Marines are in Iraq and Afghanistan it's because they want them in Iraq and Afghanistan..

    If they do not receive social security but are on an elite retirement plan not available to the people, it's because they want it that way.

    There are no insoluble government problems.

    Do not let these 545 people shift the blame to bureaucrats, whom they hire and whose jobs they can abolish; to lobbyists, whose gifts and advice they can reject; to regulators, to whom they give the power to regulate and from whom they can take this power. Above all, do not let them con you into the belief that there exists disembodied mystical forces like "the economy," "inflation," or "politics" that prevent them from doing what they take an oath to do.

    Those 545 people, and they alone, are responsible. They, and they alone, have the power.

    They, and they alone, should be held accountable by the people who are their bosses. Provided the voters have the gumption to manage their own employees… We should vote all of them out of office and clean up their mess!

    Charlie Reese is a former columnist of the Orlando Sentinel Newspaper.

    What you do with this article now that you have read it… is up to you.

    This might be funny if it weren't so true.

    Be sure to read all the way to the end:

    STILL THINK THIS IS FUNNY?

    Not one of these taxes existed 100 years ago, & our nation was the most

    prosperous in the world. We had absolutely no national debt, had the

    largest middle class in the world, and Mom stayed home to raise the kids.

    Ineptocracy: A system of government least capable to lead are elected by the least capable of producing, and where the members of society least likely to sustain themselves or succeed, are rewarded with goods and services paid for by the confiscated wealth of a diminishing number of producers.

  6. Why not allow for the people to vote for amendments, if 2/3 of the population wants an amendment allow it. Also side note never trust senators, theyre whole purpose is undemocratic being able to completely stop bills from the house, they werent even elected till the 1930.

  8. Delegates can be bought, we shouldn't let anyone change our constitution, we should force the states to refuse doing unconstitutional things, we should choose the right representation in the state, people who are willing to tell the federal government No that is unconstitutional and I am not doing it, the federal government is going to use the power of the purse to force the state to do it but we have to resist that's the only way we will be able to make America Great again not opening the constitution to a change, the people behind this article 5 convention already drafted 3 different constitution to replace our constitution and belive me is not good, is mostly pure communism.
    Please do your research and learn the truth

  9. Why no forcing the federal government to honor the limitations the already have, in the last few years the federal government has violated our constitutional rights many time, why would we the people open the constitution to scrutiny and possible change for worse if as it is the federal government (the creature) we created doesn't follow the rules the way the constitution says, answer me that question.
    Why giving this corrupt politicians more opportunities to destroy our constitution, trusting delegates that can be bought to vote for the people? No no no

  11. I agree things need to change, but I disagree on how they need to change. IMHO we need to re-visit the currently accepted interpretation of the Constitution that allows the fed gov to continue growing via an irrational interpretation of the General Welfare and Commerce clauses. Since the Great Depression the fed gov has continually expanded in size and scope due to this irrational interpretation, and that is the root of the problem.

  13. So… because the current administration — is basically not following the constitution – ppl think it's a good idea to change it?
    Shouldn't they just be held accountable for their actions — instead of amending the constitution? I think this is dangerous waters! Because couldn't it be amended in harmful ways to…??? This administration has gotten away with so much already! They should be held accountable – Impeached!
    Can someone please explain…
    I'm just trying to learn, what this convention of States is all about… So confused!

  27. I found this video on the COS website and came here to be able to comment. This is all wonderful and good, but HOW do we get the remaining needed 17 or more states to "Pass the COS Resolution" to be able to make COS Proposals? Plus the other 4 states needed to Ratify any Amendments proposed? 15 states on the "Progress Map" have had "Active Legislation in this year" and are colored Blue, but most if not all are colored Blue (most likely) because Blue is the typical Dem state color. However, that "Active Legislation" by those Blue states could have been to block the COS possibilities (which would be no surprise from the Dems). 5 states have "Passed in one chamber," whatever that means, so maybe they could be the next 5 to Pass the COS Resolution, but that still leaves 12. 9 states are White, so they need to be worked on, but that still leaves 3, if all 3 of those White states are Passed. Please tell me what needs to happen to get 34 or more states Passed and what we can do to help.

  29. The “States” almost destroyed our country in 1865. This is a radical right ploy to destroy out great nation. Our “government” is not a separate entity. It is a group of men and women who are voted in by the people of the U.S. If you do not like our current government then you should vote for different leaders. If you really want our country to be led by the people then you need to get rid of the ELECTORAL COLLEGE. Voting for Article V will give the States more power, not the people. Do not be fooled by this baloney!

  30. It has been said the Feds don't follow the Constitution no so what makes anyone think they will follow a new amendment. I tell you they do follow the constitution but they have found loopholes in it that let them follow a different set of interpretations of our Constitutions. A properly worded and ratified amendment is an airtight law to change what the Feds do and think. This can solve most of the problems we now have. Good moral judgment helps a lot but the founders created a "system of checks and balances" that works to prevent evil from winning out.

  36. One Constitutional Amendment that should be considered is a way for the Several States to defend themselves from the type of Federal tyranny we suffer from now. The Confederate Constitution had a provision that allowed States to veto Federal edicts with a supermajority of their Statehouses. Even Federal Supreme Court decisions! Now that puts REAL power back in the hands of the People! Repeal the 17th as well as the 16th.