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Republican lawmakers from 19 states completed a plan Friday that provides an outline on how to run a constitutional convention that would propose a federal balanced budget amendment.

The four-day planning session at the Arizona state Capitol involved 71 delegates adopting rules, procedures and other technical details of how such a convention would be run. No Democrats attended.

Attendees called the end product a historic effort that sets the stage for a convention of states to propose changes to the Constitution. They call Washington dysfunctional and a convention the only way to force the federal government to address the nation's $20 trillion deficit.

Utah state Sen. Ken Ivory said the nation has deep structural issues, and the only way to fix them is to use the Constitution's own power to push changes through amendments proposed by states at a convention.

"We have a system in disrepair that operates to produce trillion-dollar deficits, to produce mountains of regulations and federal criminalization," Ivory said. "And until we restore that balance and that division in power, we're going to continue to see results that a system in disrepair produces."

A convention is a longshot. One has never successfully been used to propose an amendment, and all 27 amendments that have been adopted were proposed by Congress. But a balanced budget amendment is a core goal of conservative Republicans that have gained growing control of state Legislatures in recent years.

The goal of backers is to eliminate the federal deficit and drive down the national debt. The current federal budget includes spending of about $4 trillion and has a shortfall of nearly $700 billion, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Arizona state Sen. Don Shooter said the deficit can't be eliminated overnight with the adoption of a balanced budget mandate.

"You do it in increments, the same way you eat an elephant, one bite at a time," he said.

A convention that successfully proposes a Constitutional amendment has always been seen as a longshot. To call one, 32 state Legislatures would have to petition Congress. If an amendment is proposed, it would need ratification by 38 states.

Shooter and others gathered in Phoenix said they believe the time is right.

"Washington is dysfunctional. Is it going to stop itself?" he said. "This is an intervention."

According to the national Balanced Budget Amendment Task Force coordinating the effort, 27 states have approved qualifying resolutions. They hope the final seven, plus a few extra, could do so over the next year.

Among the resolutions passed this week is one asking Congress to call an Article V convention that convenes no later than 180 days after the 34th state passes is resolution.

Once an Article V convention is called and an amendment is developed, three-fourths of state legislatures or three-fourths of state conventions would have to ratify it for it to become part of the Constitution.

If seven states don't pass resolutions within the next year, the states agreed to hold another planning convention before the end of 2018 to assess their progress.

The states targeted are Idaho, Kentucky, South Carolina, Minnesota, Virginia, Wisconsin and Montana, several of which sent delegates to participate in the planning convention.

it's easy to see some good coming out of it. it's gaining ground. the risk, if there is one, is that it'll turn into a full-blown constitutional convention. we could wind up with Constitution v2.0.

Virginia isn't gone, but getting damn close. Our state legislatures are still R controlled.
Term limits are the ONLY way to drain the swamp IMO, but I fear even that may evolve into a mere changing of the bathwater equivalent.

McConnell and Ryan might ought to worry about their own re-elections from their respective constituants.

You DO NOT want another Consititutional Convention, at least not in these times.

Do you really want all the BLM and LGBTQ and ANTIFA delegates demanding their issues? Don't think for a moment the Bernie and Hillary crowd won't be pushing an Equal Rights Amendment and 100 other Leftist causes in direct opposition to our current Constitution. No! No! Don't go there.


The problem with term limits. If you get an election like the one in 2008 when there is a momentus shift in power, the numbers could have given Obama a Supermajority that would have rubber stamped EVERYTHING the Left wanted and effectively locked the Right out of power for 2-3 generations. Look what the 1932 election did for Dems and there were no term limits. No, I'm not for it.

you DO NOT want another Consititutional Convention, at least not in these times.

Do really want all the BLM and LGBTQ and ANTIFA delegates demanding their issues? Don't think for a moment the Nernie and Hillary crowd won't be pushing an Equal Rights Amendment and 100 other Leftist causes in direct opposition to our current Constitution. No! No! Don't go there.

Name the 26 states that will follow along on those in order for it to be approved by the Convention. If they don't get 26 votes in the Convention, then it doesn't become even a proposed Amendment.

Right now there are 29 state legislatures fully controlled by Republicans.
There are 11 state legislatures fully controlled by Democrats.
There are 10 state legislatures which are split.

So for your worry about having liberal ideas even proposed as an Amendment, the Democrats would have to have every Democrat state vote for an amendment, every split state vote for an Amendment, plus 5 Republican states vote for it.

Republicans have enough votes to kick out any proposed Amendment they like. They'll need 8 of the 10 split states to ratify it before it becomes effective - but we need no Democrat help. The Democrats can't even conceive of passing an Amendment without 16 Republican states needing to ratify it.

Calhoun, you may have missed the part about the schitt storm protests, social unrest, etc? Ole Soros, Schumer and the far left gang (throw in Bernie, too) will see this as his last chance to bang some one world gov't dreams in and I have seen the republicans fold their tents and haul ass too many times, my friend.

In only two words to a constitutional convention - fugg no.

SCOTUS picks are awesome and badly needed, but only good for 25 years at most.

Constitutional amendments to balance the budget and term limits might last hundreds of years. And I can dream of a slightly changed 2nd Amendment to remove the argument that it applies to militia only. Maybe: A well regulated Militia comprised of citizens being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of all citizens to keep and bear Arms equal to that of the military shall not be infringed.

Both needed, though, you are right in that.

WOW!

You have that VERY wrong! Heller clearly spelled out the meaning of the 2nd and the prep. clause... it defined the fact it is an individual right, there is NO argument now about what militia means! The absolute last thing needed or desired is allowing ANY changes.

Republicans have enough votes to kick out any proposed Amendment they like. They'll need 8 of the 10 split states to ratify it before it becomes effective - but we need no Democrat help. The Democrats can't even conceive of passing an Amendment without 16 Republican states needing to ratify it.

Dude! While your math is fine, has it escaped you that the GOP controls the WH, House, and Senate and can't get crap done in a unified manner? I don't trust them in the states any more than in DC, and if they phouc up a CC we'd be doomed for eternity. No thanks!

No amendment to the Constitution is any better then the judges interpreting it.

When we loose the courts, we loose The Republic, regardless of anything in the Constitution or any other foundational document.

In the absence of the rule of law, you only possess those rights you can defend.

You're correct... up until the time that another ruling comes down from SCOTUS changing the meaning.

Do you think Heller is forever? Nope. Just until there are enough liberals on the court to overrule it. There would be right now if Hillary had won. THAT'S how close we are.

Could almost care less about the red herring, swamp drainage issue.

What I want is one more Trump SCOTUS placement and then, busting up the 9th Circuit Court, creating another Circuit Court and appointing all 12 justices in it. After that, Donald can go on vacation until his next re-election.

McConnell and Ryan might ought to worry about their own re-elections from their respective constituants.

I don't support term limits.

If Americans want a certain person in a certain position they should be allowed to vote for that person indefinitely.

We get the government we deserve.




Dave

I prefer our odds outside a convention to our odds inside one...It is a major event when the court reverses itself...

A Convention of States is one of the two methods in Article 5 of our Constitution for proposing and ratifying amendments.
This does not have the power to propose a new Constitution or to change the Constitution.
An Article 5 convention would propose ideas for fixing our broken system -- a corrupt system caused by a Congress that can’t function.
A Convention of States only has the authority to propose amendments to the states to vote on.