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To: murron
There are only 2 more state legislatures to ratify this.

It doesn't ratify anything. All it would do is create a convention to propose amendments. Any amendment proposed still requires two-thirds of both houses of Congress to approve and THEN requires ratification by 38 state legislatures.

23 posted on 12/12/2008 12:13:44 PM PST by VRWCmember
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To: VRWCmember

My reading of Article V does not require congressional approval of amendments proposed by convention.


28 posted on 12/12/2008 12:18:08 PM PST by Publius Valerius
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To: VRWCmember
All it would do is create a convention to propose amendments. Any amendment proposed still requires two-thirds of both houses of Congress to approve and THEN requires ratification by 38 state legislatures

Maybe. But there is an alternative, even if they continue to abide by the Constitution, the Authors of which did not stick by the procedures of the preexisting Articles of Confederation:

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

Who would attend the national Convention and the state ratifying conventions? More importantly who would pick them? Mostly Democrat office holders. Except in the Red states. In the national convention, voting would likely be proportional to population. Which means that the Blue states would dominate. Depending on who picked the delegates to the state level conventions, they might dominate their as well.

But I don't think anyone will bother. They'll just continue ignoring the "inconvenient" parts of the Constitution, and maybe add some "positive rights" by the normal amendment process. (Right to be provided housing, health care, higher education, and a chicken in every pot.. and the pot).

74 posted on 12/15/2008 11:54:52 AM PST by El Gato ("The Second Amendment is the RESET button of the United States Constitution." -- Doug McKay)
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