Nothing in the world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty…” Theodore Roosevelt
COS 2025: So close, yet so far!
As the 2025 legislative sessions opened for our fifty state governments, hopes ran at a fever pitch. Two states (South Dakota and Wyoming) had successfully moved the Convention of States (COS) Article V petition call through all necessary committees and full senate floor votes. All that was needed was final approval by each state’s full house.
Despite herculean efforts by SD and WY COS volunteers, both state houses narrowly declined to pass the call for an Article V convention. Victory, so close at hand, was replaced with a sense of setback. However disappointed COS volunteers may feel, it is worth remembering Teddy Roosevelt’s admonishment.
The Article V state sponsored amendment mechanism is the only tool available to “We the People” for permanent restraint of federal power. It can only happen with “effort, pain and difficulty.” A look back at two notable historical movements will remind us just how lengthy and painful great accomplishments can be:
The 500 Year Emancipation
Slavery was brought to North America shortly after Columbus sailed to the “New
World”. The hideous practice of “owning” other human beings as casual property had been in practice for almost 300 years by the time of signing the Constitution. By most accounts, the Founding Fathers were personally conflicted over the practice.
Almost 200 years would pass from the signing of the Constitution through the Civil War, segregation and Jim Crow to the ultimate victory of the 1960’s and 70’s civil rights movement. The fight was excruciating in terms of time spent, lives ruined and national wounds. The cause was morally righteous and because a handful of brave leaders and millions of everyday citizens refused to accept evil in our midst, we now live in a truly color blind society. But…it didn’t happen overnight.
The Rebirth of Israel
The first formal acknowledgement of a Jewish nation, known as Israel, dates back to King David about 1,000 B.C. Approximately 300 years after David’s rule the nation of Israel was conquered. For the next 2,700 years the descendants of David would pray for the deliverance of a new Israel.
The creation of modern day Israel in 1948 came about from collective western guilt over the Holocaust genocide, two horrifying world wars and forward looking European Zionists. If “Divine Providence” has a modern day example, the reparation of the Jewish people to their historical homeland after three millennia of Diaspora must be considered. And…it, obviously, didn’t happen overnight.
COS Status in Perspective
Convention of States began in earnest just eleven years ago. In that time, it has
convinced the legislatures of nineteen states to sign on to an Article V convention call addressing fiscal reform, federal overreach and term limits (hardly an insignificant achievement).
Although South Dakota and Wyoming were disappointments, four states (Iowa, Kansas, New Hampshire and Idaho) are still in play for 2025. One or more of these states may sign on to a convention call but, if not, “We the People” will stay the course and continue the fight. But…it won’t happen overnight.
A Fresh Call to Commitment
All COS volunteer activists should consider that every great, constructive movement in history, required “effort, pain and difficulty.” We are eleven years into the Article V movement. We have both solid progress and some disappointments. This is to be expected when attempting major structural change. We can and WILL do this!
For those who wonder what they can do to help reverse decades of federal intrusion on American life and treasure, COS encourages you to sign the Article V petition and consider joining Convention of States Action as a volunteer activist in one of many roles that may be of interest.
This is your chance to effect lasting change.
God bless the USA!
