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Jim, it all depends on how the term "states" is defined. Existing state legislatures? Newly elected state conventions? Appointed state delegations? This is not elaborated on in the Constitution.

At the Constitutional Convention I think it was Franklin who said, "For God's sake, be careful who are those men."

My opposition to this convention is simple: where will you find 34 states where you can control "those men?" Let me take my state of OH. Kasich, DeWine, Taft (to some degree), Portman, Boehner et al absolutely control the state. Whether a vote of the legislature or a committee, they would never permit the repeal of the 17th. They MIGHT oppose a repeal of the 2nd, but would support a pro illegal alien measure or a climate change measure and would NOT keep such silly stuff from being introduced.

What about a convention? Who do you suppose structures HOW the convention is assembled/elected/structured?

No one has yet convinced me that even a few states---let alone 34---would structure the "state" response in a way beneficial to us.

“No one has yet convinced me that even a few states-—let alone 34-—would structure the “state” response in a way beneficial to us.”

Typical class of ‘98 SPOT ON!!

Article V efforts are NOT to be trusted period.

The assessment of the John Birch Society, Concerned Women for America, and the Eagle Forum are absolutely 100 percent correct in regards the Article V. It is dangerous, potentially uncontrollable, and requires almost if not more consensus than the first Convention in an age of snakes, backstabbers, and politicians, who would do anything to gain control over the Republic.

IMHO the only way that requires far fewer states to be effective, is for ten to fifteen Western and Mid Western States to start exercising their Sovereignty and pushing back against every misstep by the Federal Leviathan. They would first have to steel themselves against the Federal Government cutting off funding, by having their citizens send tax money to and through the state treasury and the state then being the entity responsible for the tax if any.

Remaining comments self censored.

The phony issue of a runaway Convention of the States has been litigated and relitigated so many times on these threads with the arithmetic being laid out time after time that it is impossible to credit any sentinent Freeper with being ignorant of the numbers. The numbers are so clear that it is necessary to suspend rational thinking to get to the place where we cannot find 13 House or Senate chambers from different states among the 99 house and Senate chambers which would be needed to block any leftist amendment.

In the wake of the recent by-election results of only a few days ago which strengthens even more the Republican and conservative positions in these 99 state legislative bodies, the absurdly remote possibility of a runaway convention becomes even more the product of fantasy-or purblindness.

Please note that much of the conservative resistance to a convention of the states comes from the gun lobby who would rather see the whole the Bill of Rights disappear into the maw of corrupt Washington if only they can retain their rights to go apackin'. It pains me to make this observation, but it is necessary to say that there is a minority who actually want armed strife to bring their resentments to the point of violence.

Some such as the poster of this vanity, Fhios, might be given the benefit of the doubt for having registered with us at Free Republic only very recently. But there can be no reasonable explanation for FReepers who have been exposed to the numbers which follow time after time but who time after time choose to ignore the numbers and simply regurgitate free-floating anxieties about what will never happen.

Meanwhile, what is really happening every day is that our rights are in fact disappearing in Washington, our Constitution is being amended every day by bureaucrats and judges, presidents and congressmen, treaty makers and K St. lobbyists. It is idle to believe that Donald Trump or any other charlatan, or even any new conservative president of goodwill, can stand against the vast array of forces and money propelling the country over the cliff. The Republic should turn to the Constitution to save the Constitution because we are in desperate need not of a man on horseback but of process reform which will certainly change the way Washington does business and restore liberty to the homeland because power will be taken out of the hands of the people who are presently destroying the Constitution.

Here, once again, are the numbers:

There are 99 houses in 50 state legislatures. Any leftist amendment would require only 13 of these legislative bodies from 99 to defeat ratification. In other words, three quarters of the state legislatures must ratify or 38 states. If 13 legislatures fail to ratify the amendment is defeated. Since ratification by legislatures requires both houses to consent, only 13/99 are required. That is very close to 13%.

After the last election Republicans control 69 houses of the 99 state legislative houses. Republicans control 31 of the 50 state legislatures. To stop any unwise or imprudent amendment would require only 13 of these 69 Statehouses (from different states) or about 19%, fewer than one in five.

The problem will not be to stop left-wing amendments but to pass prudent conservative amendments which restore the Constitution by invoking the Constitution.

If the Congress of the United States elects to have the ratification procedures conducted by conventions rather than legislatures, the method of selecting the delegates to those conventions would be chosen by the legislatures. If only 13 legislative bodies out of 99 object to the method chosen by the other body because it is considered to favor a leftist amendment, there is no ratification forthcoming from that state.

By either procedure the odds of a liberal amendment getting past so many conservative legislative bodies in so many states is both arithmetically and practically remote.

Finally, this is only the last line of defense, there are innumerable steps along the way which make a "runaway convention" virtually impossible and render the need for the states to fail to ratify very likely superfluous.

No one has yet convinced me that even a few states---let alone 34---would structure the "state" response in a way beneficial to us.

I'm in the same boat. very leery of the possibility of skulduggery by NWO interests.

We don't have enough statesmen in this country who have the understanding to make this anything but a train wreck to destroy our nation.

The Article V state amendment process recognizes the right of free, sovereign people to determine the envelope of the powers they grant to their government.

IOW, like the 2A, Article V grants nothing. Both are antecedent to the Constitution.

At this moment our once federal government, one supposedly limited by enumerated powers and charged with defending our natural rights is making war against the sovereign people. For all practical purposes it exercises plenary powers, many of which are identical to the usurpations we accused George III of in 1776.

To oppose the Article V state amendment process is to oppose our right to frame our government to suit our purposes and happiness.