Free Republic

Dear Friends: On Tuesday Jan. 27thSpeaker Howell’s Rules Committee will hear HJ 497 and HJ 499, applications asking Congress to call a Convention to amend (change) our U.S. Constitution. Please contact the following delegates to OPPOSE these measures. The Hearing will be in House Room 1, around 1:00 pm if you can attend. delwhowell@house.virginia.gov, delslandes@house.virginia.gov, delslandes@house.virginia.gov, delkcox@house.virginia.gov, deltkilgore@house.virginia.gov, dellware@house.virginia.gov, delcjones@house.virginia.gov, delborrock@house.virginia.gov, delbknight@house.virginia.gov, delringram@house.virginia.gov, deljmassie@house.virginia.gov, delghabeeb@house.virginia.gov, deljjoannou@house.virginia.gov, delkplum@house.virginia.gov, deldtoscano@house.virginia.gov, After all of the sacrifices made by our Founders to birth our nation and form our government, I am troubled that the Constitution is blamed for the ills facing America, when really...

Upon opening their legislative sessions in 2015, these states have Article V applications in one or both houses: AZ MA MO MT NH NJ ND SC VA WY

Ten states now have taken the first step toward limiting the power of the federal government. Officials from Arizona, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Dakota, South Carolina, Virginia and Wyoming have filed resolutions calling for a convention of states that would propose amendments to the U.S. Constitution with the express purpose of limiting the power and jurisdiction of the federal government. Article V of the Constitution gives the states the power to call such a convention. The article reads, in part: “The Congress, whenever two thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to...

In case you couldn’t tell by their actions, the GOP currently holds more seats in Congress than they have since 1929, a direct result of mid-term voters demanding change writ large. Their first action was to elect leadership, and incredibly, they chose the same floundering crew who, hand-in-hand with equally inept Democrats in Congress and the White House, have nearly scuttled the Ship of State. We all know that the definition of “Insanity” is doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results. Let me add one to the mix: “Treason”… which one source defines as the betrayal of...

<p>Rep. Steve Stivers’ (R-OH) amendment to the House Rules passed by a vote on the House Floor this week, according to a press release published by Rep. Stivers’ office. The rule will provide a system with which to track, count, and organize Article V applications to Congress.</p>

Today’s reelection of John Boehner proves there is but one party, the Uniparty. Political parties represent the common interests of their members, and to this end the two wings of the Uniparty have far more in common than differences. Their rhetoric often contrasts, but their mutual interests are on display. Witness the fifth year of Obamacare, out of control spending, executive and judicial tyranny. Both wings despise the Tea Party more than each other. The framers’ constitution wisely divided power and provided checks that reached across the branches. Congress can deny appropriations, congress can override presidential vetoes, the senate can...

The 2014 midterm elections gave state Republicans their largest political majorities of the modern political era. In Governor races, the GOP picked up a net 2 states, against expectations of a 2-seat loss. The party also holds 68 of the nation’s 98 partisan legislative chambers, a grip on state government not seen since the 1920s. In only seven deeply blue states do Democrats control both the legislature and the Governor’s mansion. Republicans hold or share control in every other state. Conservatives rightfully worry that Republicans in Washington will pursue a modest agenda with their Congressional majorities, but the states provide...

Representatives in the Aiken County legislative delegation have hit the ground running by pre-filing bills to gain position at the top of the agenda when legislators get back to Columbia in January. S.C. Rep. Bill Taylor, R-Aiken, is continuing his push for an Article V Convention of States and pre-filed for the bill about three weeks ago. Taylor began his pursuit of a states’ convention a year ago when he represented South Carolina in the Palmetto State’s call for a convention along with Virginia. “Whereas, it is the solemn duty of the States to protect the liberty of our people,...

For 100 years, the federal government has usurped powers not delegated to it in our Constitution. What should we do about it? Should we reclaim our existing Constitution and put an end to the usurpations? Or should we “modernize” the Constitution by changing it so as to delegate to the federal government the powers it has usurped – so as to legalize what is now unconstitutional? Mark Levin begins “The Liberty Amendments” by saying he doesn’t believe the Constitution requires “modernization through amendments”. But he then proposes a series of amendments, six of which modernize our Constitution to delegate to...

Irrespective of our political philosophy, few among us are not concerned with the conflict between the legislative and executive branches of the federal government. Grandstanding has become the norm in an increasingly polarized environment, but events of late – specifically, the unilateral de-criminalization of millions of illegal aliens under the guise of prosecutorial discretion - far exceeds the usual. Atop the list of attributes that make the structure of our republican federalism the world’s benchmark for self-governance is our constitutional system of checks and balances. For almost 2¼ centuries it has ensured against the disproportionate amassing of power by any...

Anyone looking for a good reason to support Mandatory Term Limits for all federal officials need look no further than the headlines. After the most resounding electoral triumph since 1947, Republican Congressional “leaders” were too afraid to do what they were elected to do – check the president's unilateral amnesty grant. They were too afraid to do what’s right for the country, too afraid that they won’t be re-elected. Job One for the Party Elite has become protecting their private power structure, not the Constitution. During the last legislative session here in Arizona, a majority of constitutional conservatives supported legislation...

A movement is afoot from state lawmakers who believe the federal government has amassed far too much power, to the detriment of state authority and autonomy. They’re embarking on a massive undertaking -- crafting a set of guidelines for considering amendments to the U.S. Constitution in order to shift more power back to the states. Just blocks from the White House, U.S. Supreme Court and U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., state lawmakers representing different political stripes and 28 states from Alaska to Florida this week brainstormed suggestions for going about an Article V convention to propose amendments to the U.S....

Few Americans who entered polling booths for the Nov. 4 election and pulled the lever for their favorite candidate for Senate realize that for most of American history, senators were chosen by the state legislatures. It wasn’t until 1913 that the 17thAmendment was passed, granting American voters the constitutional right of directly electing their senators.While this important amendment may seem innocuous, the reality is that few other changes to our Constitution have had the same detrimental effect on our nation than this single, nearly forgotten alteration.The passage of the 17th Amendment was driven largely by the populist movement of the...

Constitutional expert and nationally syndicated talk show host Mark Levin said that state legislatures have a duty to “restore our republic and give us our Constitution back,” at the American Legislative Exchange Council’s (ALEC) National Policy Summit at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Washington, D.C., on Thursday. Levin’s remarks focused on how Article V of the Constitution, which gives state legislatures the power to act as a final check on the abuse of power in Washington, is the way to reclaim self-governance. Wide-ranging decisions affecting virtually every aspect of life are being made by fewer and fewer masterminds in Washington,...

The building national movement for a constitutional convention to block President Obama’s executive orders got a huge boost Thursday when leading advocate Mark Levin urged state lawmakers to throttle all of Washington, including Republicans. He described a nation that is morphing into a “post-constitutional” crisis where state legislatures are “irrelevant,” and the president and Congress do whatever they want, and nobody in Washington provides checks and balances. “We have a president of the United States who says, ‘Hey, Congress won’t act. I will.’ Excuse me? Well what’s that? Sounds like a runaway convention to me,” he said. Ditto for Republicans....

At this moment, Mark Levin is speaking to a breakfast gathering of the American Legislative Exchange Council. Afterward, at 9:30 AM, he will join a Convention of the States Policy Workshop. On his radio show, he has been openly critical of state legislators for not doing their duty, to demand an amendments convention. I can only assume that videos will be available in the near future. The question of the desirability of a convention, so often expressed at FreeRepublic, is entirely separate from the legal issue of congress’ obligations under Article V*. More than two-thirds of the states have made...

Illinois State lawmakers have joined several other states to call for a Constitutional Convention to amend the U.S. Constitution when it comes to campaign finance reform. During debate on the House floor Wednesday, State Rep. Chapa LaVia said calls for the convention are to address campaign finance and the scope cannot go farther than that. But outgoing State Rep. Mike Bost, who recently won an election to the U.S. House, says once the door is opened, anything is possible. “Once you open and you do a Constitutional convention, it is not going to be and cannot be focused just on...

No topic beats the frequency of politics at Free Republic. Since the national government has become ubiquitous in our lives from beginning to end, it follows we should pay attention to what our masters are doing. Yes, masters. On November 20th, 2014, Obama made clear the midterm trouncing of Hisself and his party would have no effect on his approach to governing. Nearly as disappointing, but not shocking was the limp GOPE response to Obama’s declaration. In a speech designed for all North America, (minus Canadians and Americans) Barack Hussein Obama crossed America’s Rubicon and decreed his lawmaking powers. Dressed...

Under pressure from the base, republicans in congress are scrambling to deal with Obama’s latest high crime. Rest assured whatever the GOP does will be designed to minimize electoral threats to their reelection in 2016, and ignore the well-being of our republic. Perhaps they will cut funding to that which they never appropriated funds in the first place. How about a lawsuit? Impeach? Forget it. Whatever they do will not deal with the tyranny, the precedent of executive law making that will endure after 2016 for the next president to exploit. The framers gave us legal, constitutional means to deal...

Conservatives are not split as to whether or not Obama and his ministers have committed high crimes. We are split over what to do about it. There is no question Obama has gathered arbitrary powers within the executive branch to make, ignore, modify congressional statutes at his whim. His administrative agencies, a shadow army of lawgivers whose identities (sans Gruber) are kept quiet and out of public view, issue dozens of unconstitutional and imperial diktats every year. OTOH, what is certain is that impeachment of American presidents is unfortunately an historic rarity. Taken all together, impeachment is largely viewed as...