The longest government shutdown in the history of the United States is ongoing as of the writing of this article.  Regardless of political persuasion, the polling data now indicate that the American people have had enough.  Both parties have polling data in the toilet with regard to confidence in governing the country.  Washington seems oblivious to this profound and deep mistrust the people have toward their government.

Ask yourself this: Whom do you trust more, the government or the local TV weatherman?

This is fertile ground for a significant change.  But what kind of change?  Right now, the Congress is behaving like a rebellious teenager, refusing to do his assigned chores.  In the old days, such a teenager would be taken to the woodshed; now we take away privileges.  Congress’s privileges must be taken away, such as the privilege of unlimited terms in office or the privilege of raising the debt ceiling simply to avoid cutting unnecessary budget expenditures.  But how can these privileges be taken away?

Now it is time for a Convention of States to propose amendments to the Constitution to bring the rebellious teenage government back in line.  There are probably enough calls for a convention of states sitting in some dusty file at the Archives, but no one knows, since an audit to determine the actual number of calls from the several states has never been conducted.  No member of Congress has asked, and there is no requirement on the part of the Archivist to report to Congress whether the requisite number of calls now sits in that dusty file.

Why?  The truth is that no one in Washington wants a Convention of States (also known as and Article V Convention) because it will result in diminished power for Washington.

You may be asking how is a Convention of States convened?  Article V of the Constitution states the following:

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the application of the legislatures of two thirds of the several states, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the legislatures of three fourths of the several states, or by conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article; and that no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.

This means that just thirty-four state legislatures can submit resolutions calling for a Convention of States.  Once this is accomplished, the Constitution has no further instruction.  These calls are sent to the Archivist, yet the Archivist is under no obligation to inform anyone that the threshold of the required number of resolutions has been reached.  There is a loosely held belief that the Congressional Research Service (CRS) keeps track of these resolutions if tasked to do so.

A report from the CRS (CRS Report, R42589) states the following: “The Archivist has no responsibilities under Article V regarding the calling of a convention: that authority resides in Congress.”

This is a bit of an overreach, since the CRS does not decide constitutional duties and issues.  Congress probably has no authority at all regarding the actual call for the convention.  They may affirm that a call has been made, but no legislation currently exists for Congress to authorize (or not) a Convention of States (CoS).  These are uncharted waters to navigate and will, if ever it is discovered that 34 states have called for a CoS, likely end up in the Supreme Court’s lap.

But a lack of affirmation is not an impediment to the convening of the CoS.  Once one state (likely Texas) begins to hold elections for delegates to the CoS, then other states will follow suit so as not to be left out in the cold when the convention begins.  But make no mistake about it: Such a convention is not a constitutional convention.  Article V is clear that it is a convention to amend the Constitution only.

The Constitution is simply an operating agreement among the states on how the federal government is to operate and how is it prohibited from operating — e.g., states’ rights issues.  If it is determined that there are, indeed, the requisite number of states (thirty-four) calling for a CoS, then undoubtedly, there will be court challenges and pressure upon states to rescind their resolutions.  It will not be easy to overcome these obstacles, but certainly not impossible.

Washington fears a CoS more than a nuclear strike.  The center of federal power will try everything, legal and extralegal, to stop the CoS.  This fear is not about a runaway convention; it is fear of diminished power.  

The alternative is continued government shutdowns and other abuses of power and position in Washington.

The fear-mongers will say that it will be a runaway convention.  There is a safety valve in Article V to correct a so-called runaway convention.  Let us pretend the CoS passes an amendment to abolish the Second Amendment, or even worse, the Bill of Rights altogether.  That proposed amendment from the CoS must be ratified by three quarters of the states.  That means that just 13 states have veto power over any amendment offered by the CoS for ratification.

There have been more than 11,000 attempts to amend the Constitution.  Of those, 33 have been sent to the states to be ratified, and 27 met the threshold to be ratified.  So there is no risk of a runaway convention abolishing the Bill of Rights, or some other hare-brained idea.

This will seem like bitter medicine to many, but what alternative is there to fix a broken country?

Image: PublicDomainPictures via Pixabay, Pixabay License.