Correction / typo "possibly" in he title.
Attention All Oath Keepers!
Why the Article V Convention Must Be Opposed
by Jay Stang, Texas Oath Keepers Executive Vice-President and member of our Board of Directors
Fellow Oath Keepers,
The Constitution provides us several avenues to amend, or change it. The avenue most Americans are familiar with is the amendment. The least known, until now, is the convention, also identified in Article V.
The convention, known in this day as the Convention of the States (CoS), would be convened for the purpose of proposing amendments. Is there anything else that could happen? I can't say for sure, but consider this: if the US Government had any chance of ridding itself of the chains that Jefferson prescribed, do you think it would take the chance? Any way to rid itself formally of the Bill of Rights?
Who would be sent to this Convention?
Remember, if the Article V machinery is sent into motion, think about who will control it? Our current federal government? How many times have you been frustrated with the failure of congressional leadership in both houses to uphold their oaths, or to put our interests first?
Guess what? They'll be forming and planning the convention. Uh oh. There are several pieces of state legislation in the Texas Legislature right now to specify delegates, how they are selected, their qualifications, etc. That sounds great on paper, doesn't it? Will the delegates faithfully execute the charter given them by the various state legislatures around the country? What did the delegates to the last convention do? Here is the exhausting detail in which the convention is described.
Article V:
"The Congress...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;..."
That's it. That's all the Constitution says regarding the convention. It doesn't say what they are allowed to talk about, or not allowed to talk about. Congress doesn't get any guidance on how to run it.
What if they throw out the whole Constitution? Is it possible? Do you trust John Boehner, Mitch McConnell and President Obama?
Why do we need a CoS? To pass a balanced budget amendment? Would that solve our problems? One more law, one more amendment? Does the federal government follow the Constitution now? If not, why not?
Friends, the Constitution was created for a moral and religious people. It is unsuited for the governing of any other. Why? Moral and religious people govern themselves. They don't need an all powerful government to do it for them. With no integrity or ethics, the Constitution is merely an eloquent collection of words on paper. It has no magic power. No soul. The Constitution is only as good as the people who follow it. It is not the laws on the books that matter; it is the law in our hearts that matters. If we can not govern ourselves, someone else will. Nature abhors a vacuum.
Please ponder these questions as you decide whether to support or oppose the Convention of the States.
Just remember this: when people tell you not to worry, that's when you should start.
Jay Stang
-end-
This article is online at Oath Keepers' national website:
http://oathkeepers.org/oktester/why-the-article-v-convention-must-be-opposed/
Attention All Oath Keepers!
Why the Article V Convention Must Be Opposed
by Jay Stang, Texas Oath Keepers Executive Vice-President and member of our Board of Directors
Fellow Oath Keepers,
The Constitution provides us several avenues to amend, or change it. The avenue most Americans are familiar with is the amendment. The least known, until now, is the convention, also identified in Article V.
The convention, known in this day as the Convention of the States (CoS), would be convened for the purpose of proposing amendments. Is there anything else that could happen? I can't say for sure, but consider this: if the US Government had any chance of ridding itself of the chains that Jefferson prescribed, do you think it would take the chance? Any way to rid itself formally of the Bill of Rights?
Who would be sent to this Convention?
Remember, if the Article V machinery is sent into motion, think about who will control it? Our current federal government? How many times have you been frustrated with the failure of congressional leadership in both houses to uphold their oaths, or to put our interests first?
Guess what? They'll be forming and planning the convention. Uh oh. There are several pieces of state legislation in the Texas Legislature right now to specify delegates, how they are selected, their qualifications, etc. That sounds great on paper, doesn't it? Will the delegates faithfully execute the charter given them by the various state legislatures around the country? What did the delegates to the last convention do? Here is the exhausting detail in which the convention is described.
Article V:
"The Congress...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;..."
That's it. That's all the Constitution says regarding the convention. It doesn't say what they are allowed to talk about, or not allowed to talk about. Congress doesn't get any guidance on how to run it.
What if they throw out the whole Constitution? Is it possible? Do you trust John Boehner, Mitch McConnell and President Obama?
Why do we need a CoS? To pass a balanced budget amendment? Would that solve our problems? One more law, one more amendment? Does the federal government follow the Constitution now? If not, why not?
Friends, the Constitution was created for a moral and religious people. It is unsuited for the governing of any other. Why? Moral and religious people govern themselves. They don't need an all powerful government to do it for them. With no integrity or ethics, the Constitution is merely an eloquent collection of words on paper. It has no magic power. No soul. The Constitution is only as good as the people who follow it. It is not the laws on the books that matter; it is the law in our hearts that matters. If we can not govern ourselves, someone else will. Nature abhors a vacuum.
Please ponder these questions as you decide whether to support or oppose the Convention of the States.
Just remember this: when people tell you not to worry, that's when you should start.
Jay Stang
-end-
This article is online at Oath Keepers' national website:
http://oathkeepers.org/oktester/why-the-article-v-convention-must-be-opposed/
