Ten years ago in August of 2013, the Convention of States movement was formed by Michael Farris and Mark Meckler, two men who saw a solution to the outrageous abuses in the federal government. This month, COS is celebrating its tenth anniversary, looking back at a decade of activism and also looking ahead to the coming Article V convention.
This past Sunday, the two founders joined Regional Director Jonathan Viaud on a special edition of COS at Home to reflect on the organization’s development. They detailed why and how the COS movement first came about: we have the Constitution as written, and then we have the Constitution as interpreted by the U.S. Supreme Court, said Farris, a constitutional law professor.
“What I tried to do in constitutional law classes was to teach both those things and say, here's what the Constitution originally meant. Here's what the Supreme Court says it means today, compare and contrast,” he told listeners. “And then I asked the question, so what do we do about it? How do we fix it?”
There’s not a single instance where the Constitution as written was improved upon by what the Supreme Court did in its interpretation, he noted.
If Farris sees a problem, he is determined to find a solution. With his profound knowledge of the Constitution, he knew that Article V existed and that it was a feasible option to restore power to the states. Meanwhile, with his bold leadership and ability to effectively organize the grassroots, Meckler brought the vision for bringing the Article V movement to life.
“We've been a team in spirit for 10 years… I think it's one of the most wonderful things I've ever been involved in in my life,” Farris remarked.
“Part of the strength of Convention of States is you got two brothers and now millions of others who've locked arms, who literally pledge their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor. And it started from literally just the two of us on the phone deciding we were going to do that,” Meckler recounted.
Show host Jonathan Viaud called it an "incredible act of Providence" to bring the movement together and now be here 10 years later.
The three men shared some of their favorite memories from the movement, which brought up topics including a 2014 debate between Farris and Andy Schlafly in New Jersey, sitting in the Georgia legislature when it became the first state to pass the Resolution, and the announcement of Farris returning to COS.
SEE ALSO: A Decade of Convention of States - Celebrating 10 Years of Grassroots Change
After sharing these unforgettable moments, a frequent question was presented by a viewer: when will the COS movement reach the 34-state threshold required to call a convention?
The process is slow, which can sometimes be frustrating. However, the process was intended to be slow because our Founding Fathers didn’t want it to be easy for us to amend the Constitution.
“I can tell you it's hard. It's supposed to be hard, and along the way, that allows us to build the largest grassroots army in American history,” Meckler said.
Farris disclosed that it will happen before he turns 80, and he will be 72 in a couple of weeks.
The Convention of States organization topped 2.5 million petition signers over the weekend thanks to the thousands of activists on the ground in every state. This unprecedented milestone in the Article V movement is bringing us closer to holding D.C. accountable, and you can support the cause by signing the petition below.
