Flushing resident, Rhonda Ruterbusch, joined the U.S. Army right out of high school and served as an Army medic at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas. There she met her husband and, after starting a family, returned to civilian life.
She continued a life of service to others as a Registered Nurse. Rhonda recently retired after 38 years at a local hospital but continues to work at several local clinics. Her community service has included involvement in her church, a Brownie troop leader, and a volleyball coach at her daughters’ Lutheran school. She considers her move into grassroots activism to be a natural progression of her life’s commitment to service.
“I attended a Stand-Up Michigan rally and heard this guy named Truman Mast speaking about the Convention of States resolution,” said Ruterbusch. “He wasn’t a politician. He was a farrier and blacksmith from Imlay City, but he gave a very good presentation about how the U.S. Constitution gives the average citizen a method for pushing back against the federal government involving itself in every aspect of our daily lives. Like most people, I felt that I had not been paying attention and now we have so many problems. His presentation was very convincing. The Framers put the COS mechanism into the Constitution for the People to use for just such a time as this. I decided to take action and get involved.”
Ruterbusch has taken the free online training classes provided by COS University and will be serving as a District Captain in Region 3 for House District 51. Her mission is to build a non-partisan engaged army of grassroots activists who will persuade Representative Mike Mueller to support the Resolution.
“We must all step up to the plate and get involved,” says Ruterbusch. “I love this country. I love what America represents. I tell my girls, I signed on the dotted line once many years ago because I wanted to serve my country. I signed up even though I knew there was a chance I could end up in war and not survive. I am ready to step up and serve again. I want my children and grandchildren to grow old in a free country.”
Those wishing to join Rhonda in getting Michigan to join the 18 other States that have passed the Resolution can contact her at Rhonda.Ruterbusch@cosaction.com or go to the COS website for more information at: www.conventionofstates.com. Answers to frequently asked questions are at: https://conventionofstates.com/files/faq/download
Background
Article V of the U.S. Constitution spells out two ways to amend the nation’s governing document. The original draft of Article V only provided for the U.S. Congress to propose amendments; however, George Mason of Virginia posed a question asking what recourse the People would have should the time ever come when Congress might be hostile to the will of the People. After a short debate, the Framers amended Article V to add a second method that allows two-thirds (34) of the legislatures of the several States to pass a Resolution calling for a convention of all the States for the purpose of considering proposed amendments.
The Resolution is identical in all 50 States. It calls for consideration of amendments with three general areas: (1) fiscal restraint of the federal government, (2) term limits on members of Congress and federal appointees, and (3) limits on federal government power and jurisdiction. When 34 states pass the resolution, Congress must set a time and place for a convention of all 50 states. The Legislature of each State selects the number of at-will delegates to the convention and charges them to stay within the framework of the Resolution, much the same way Electors are selected and charged to perform their duty in the Electoral College. No matter how many delegates are sent, each State only has one vote for any proposed amendment to move forward out of the convention. Any proposed amendments coming out of the convention have to then be ratified by three-fourths (38) of the several State legislatures to become an official Amendment.
Because it is a Resolution by the State Legislature, the Governor cannot veto it. Neither the U.S. House, the Senate, nor even the President can block it. The Resolution most clearly represents the direct will of We the People through their duly elected State legislators.
Michigan State Representative Matt Hall of Marshall, MI, 63rd district, has introduced the Article V Convention of States resolution in Michigan and has 27 co-sponsors. The Resolution needs 56 votes to pass in the State House and 20 votes to pass in the State Senate.
House Joint Resolution (HJR)-E
The legislature of the State of Michigan hereby applies to Congress, under the provisions of Article V of the Constitution of the United States, for the calling of a convention of the states, limited to proposing amendments to the Constitution of the United States that impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government and limit the terms of office for its officials and members of Congress.
The resolution has already passed in 18 states and 23 states have passed it in one of their two chambers.
The language of the Resolution is very specific, and the process does not allow for “a runaway convention” due to the delegates being “charged” to stay within the framework of the Resolution. There is also the high requirement of 38 State Legislatures ratifying any proposed amendments. Those who are opposing the COS process and making such claims have been found to be either misinformed about how the process works or are themselves vested in the status quo of our current federal government system.
ABOUT CONVENTION OF STATES ACTION
Convention of States Action is a 501(c)(4) non-profit organization founded for the purpose of stopping the runaway power of the federal government. Our mission is to inspire a spiritual and political awakening in America and build an engaged army of self-governing grassroots activists that support a Convention of States. Learn more at https://conventionofstates.com/michigan-home
