H.3205 Call for a Federal Constitutional Convention

H.3205 Call for a Federal Constitutional Convention

Time Range For Action Alert: 
February 17, 2022 to February 22, 2022

Action Alert: your voice matters

H.3205 would join South Carolina to 17 other states that have passed resolutions to call a convention under Article V of the U. S. Constitution. This is an ambitious attempt to cripple the federal government funded by special interests.

The purpose of the convention is said to be:

“limited to proposing amendments to the United States Constitution that impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, and limit the terms of office for its officials and for members of Congress.”

The whole issue is surrounded by important uncertainties, especially since no convention has been convened since 1787 and that convention chose to abandon its original scope to completely redefine the nation’s government. 

Reference: background document and League testimony from multiple hearings 

 

When

By Tuesday, February 22, 2022

How

Call (preferred) or email members of the Senate Judiciary Committee:

 

Talking Points

  • Independent constitutional experts say that Article V does NOT give states clear authority to define the scope and procedures of an Article V convention. Contrary to assurances from the group promoting this plan, it is quite possible that a convention can redefine itself and “go rogue,” taking up any part of the Constitution that it chooses including the Bill of Rights.
  • This resolution is designed to amplify the voices of smaller states (as in the Senate and Electoral College) by restricting the convention to a one-state-one-vote plan. The position of the League is that states should be allocated votes based on population, a position that has also been promoted by the American Bar Association. Contrary to claims of H. 3205 backers, the Constitution is silent on this issue. 
  • The requirement that state legislatures must approve amendments generated by the Convention is unconvincing protection, given the certainty that very wealthy special interests would again launch campaigns to pass measures that would serve them well. “Reining in the federal government” makes great sound bites until people find their lives damaged and disrupted.
  • The reason that the goals of the proposed convention have not been met by Congress is that they are fundamentally unpopular with the American people. Programs like Medicare and regulation of corporate treatment of consumers, employees, and the environment exist because they are very widely supported, even demanded. 
  • There is no guarantee for anyone that a convention would do away with the things they don’t like about the federal government while protecting those that they do. 
  • Our politics are currently terribly divided. The process of constituting a convention would add to the turmoil and division in our nation. If a convention is successfully convened, the convention itself and anything it produces will lack essential legitimacy in the eyes of the majority of the public.

 

Issues referenced by this action alert: 
Constitutional Conventions