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The U.S. Constitution has 27 amendments; each was proposed by Congress and ratified by the states.
However, the Constitution sets forth another procedure, never before used, for amending the Constitution. At the request of two thirds of the states, a constitutional convention would be held, at which amendments could be proposed. Any proposals would become part of the Constitution if three fourths of the states ratified them, either at state conventions or in the state legislatures.
Currently, 27 of the needed 34 states have petitioned Congress for a constitutional convention, for the ostensible purpose of writing a balanced-budget amendment (BBA). However, the convention might propose other changes in addition or instead of a BBA—even a total rewrite of the Constitution—if 38 states agreed, the changes would become law.
In November, legislators from 30 states met in Salt Lake City to discuss the matter.
- Forbes article from 2014 (mirror)
- John Birch Society (has a map)
- utahpolicy.com
- Deseret News
- Yellowhammer News
- The Universe—Brigham Young University
- San Francisco Chronicle
- KSTU-TV
- The Columbian
- Washington Post blog about historical attempts at constitutional conventions
- The Spokesman-Review
(Score: 2) by NotSanguine on Saturday December 12 2015, @09:54PM
Actually it appears to be you who haven't actually cracked a history book. But since you at least put up a valiant attempt vs the totally moronic AC comments I'm going to actually deal with yours. Shocking low level of civics education on display here. :(
1. Congress can (and has) pass(ed) new legislation in response to Supreme Court decisions, rendering those decisions null and void. The several states can (and have) overruled Supreme court decisions by ratifying amendments to the constitution.
Not really. Sure, if Congress were really determined they could in theory simply impeach every Supreme and amend the Constitution but that in fact never happens. The States themselves have never had recourse against the Supremes. They -could- convene a Convention of the States, which is what is under discussion here, but since they haven't managed to pull it off in two centuries the threat doesn't seem to be a strong deterrent to an out of control SCOTUS. Congress can override some Supreme Court rulings with a normal bill but often imperfectly.
Actually, Congress has overruled the Supreme court [prospect.org] on a number of occasions.
What's more, Constitutional amendments have overruled Supreme court decisions (with just a quick review), including the Dred Scott [wikipedia.org] decision which was nullified by the Thirteenth Amendment [wikipedia.org] and Breedlove v. Suttles [wikipedia.org], overriden by the Twenty-Fourth Amendment [wikipedia.org].
But since it wasn't stuff that you care about, it never happened right?
What's more, as you point out, we are not a democracy, we are a constitutional republic. This was by design, to make sure that minority rights would be protected from the tyranny of the majority. The examples you provide about marriage equality and DOMA are perfect examples of minority rights being protected by our constitutional republican system.
You make my arguments for me friend. Thanks!
No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical. --Niels Bohr