Utah recently became the 14th state in history to call an Article V Convention of States.
That's big news in the fight against big-government overreach because, as Convention of States Senior Advisor Rob Natelson explains below, an Article V Convention can reverse Supreme Court decisions that give cover to socialist agendas.
While the media fixate on the socialist impulses of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and her allies, a quiet grass-roots revolution is spreading through the country. If successful, it will ensure that demagogues can never impose socialism in America.
The revolution is called the Convention of States movement — and on Tuesday Utah became the 14th state to sign on. The Utah state legislature passed a formal “application” for what the U.S. Constitution calls a “convention for proposing amendments.”
The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Merill Nelson, said the aim was to fix a “broken” federal government. “The checks and balances in our Constitution have been stretched and broken. All three branches are exercising legislative power. The courts are deciding matters of public policy. The executive is issuing executive orders, making law as we speak. And there’s no way to challenge it.”
Utah’s action is particularly significant because that state had been a stronghold for organizations opposing a convention. Those organizations typically raise money by telling donors the convention could, essentially, stage a coup d’etat — a ridiculous claim with no legal or historical basis.
The Constitution includes restraints on federal power, which, if enforced, would prevent socialists from enacting their agenda. However, those restraints have atrophied in recent years. A primary aim of convention advocates is to restore them.
For example, when read correctly, the Constitution grants Congress only limited spending authority, leaving most social programs to the states. Thus, a proper reading of the Constitution prevents Congress from imposing a single-payer health plan. But rogue Supreme Court decisions have “interpreted” the Constitution to permit Congress to spend without restraint. Those decisions give socialists legal cover for a single-payer system.
Fortunately, constitutional amendments can overrule rogue Supreme Court decisions. Three amendments — the 11th, 14th, and 26th — were adopted partly or entirely for that purpose. Similarly, amendments can protect Americans from other socialist goals, such as the Green New Deal, confiscatory taxation, seizure of businesses and other property, and abolition of air travel.
Click here to read Prof. Natelson's full article on The Daily Caller.
Want to get involved in your state? Sign the Convention of States Petition below!
