I should have included this excerpt from the article:
“How? The best idea I know of is a new approach to a Balanced Budget Amendment as put forward by Nick Dranias of the Arizona-based Goldwater Institute. He begins by identifying the problem: “Unlimited debt is the fairy dust that makes unlimited government possible.” We can only pretend to live in this fairy tale for so long, because our debt has climbed to epic proportions. The federal government’s explicit debt liabilities now exceed our national GDP, and that doesn’t even include an estimated $100 trillion of unfunded liabilities that are baked into our entitlement programs. It seems a mathematical certainty that a course correction will come in the next twenty years. The question is whether the correction will arrive as a sudden crisis or a challenge we meet with a plan.
The Goldwater Institute has such a plan. Its “Compact for a Balanced Budget” calls for a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution that gives the states the authority to rein in federal spending. The strategy is to move the amendment forward via a to-date-unused provision in Article V of the Constitution, which would circumvent Congress with a (carefully limited) constitutional convention, organized via a compact among two-thirds of the states. George Will has taken to the pages of the Washington Post to encourage the emerging movement of “Fivers” rallying behind the Article V strategy.”
I was lucky enough to observe the debate in the Senate Judiciary committee when this was proposed in the ‘80s. It was frustrating to watch the democrats trash the idea of a balance budget amendment. It was clear their party dogma is “tax and spend” to achieve prosperity. They refuse to believe anything else.
I am stumped that anyone assumes the government would abide by that amendment after ignoring the others
A Balanced Budget Amendment has to be bullet proof:
1) There cannot be “off budget” expenditures or black budgets. If at the end of the fiscal year an agency has surplus funds, they revert to the Treasury.
2) Debt reduction must be included until there is no debt, then from that point, debt must be resolved within the current term of congress. This means the government can no longer issue long term debt, but can use existing funds to *buy* commercial, long term bonds.
3) Any “emergency clause” must be very carefully outlined and limited, or some POTUS will just declare either a “permanent war” (even like the War On Drugs) emergency; or worse, a “permanent disaster” emergency, based on nonsense like a “carbon dioxide crisis”.
Article V ping.
The Convention of States strategy is the way to go. Balanced budget amendment, term limits, repeal of the 17th Amendment, and any other sensible approach to restoring the Constitution as written, require a coordinated strategy. The reason that previous attempts have not worked is that not enough states have ever agreed on the specific amendment.
COS QUOTE:
Plan: COS’s plan is twofold
1. We want to call a convention for a particular subject rather than a particular amendment. Instead of calling a convention for a balanced budget amendment (though we are entirely supportive of such an amendment), we want to call a convention for the following purpose: Limiting the power and jurisdiction of the federal government.
2. We believe the grassroots is the key to calling a successful convention. We would like to build a political operation in a minimum of 40 states, getting 100 people to volunteer in at least 75% of the state legislative districts. Only through the support of the American people will this project have a chance to succeed.
http://conventionofstates.com/welcome/
Couple weeks, done deal.
Or buy more ammo and dial in for the long haul.