Opponents of the Convention of States will often raise the objection that an Article V Convention for proposing amendments is a dangerous undertaking because we do not have among us honorable statesmen of the character of George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton.
Here is one example from the Eagle Forum:
“But this is extremely risky, especially today with the honor and integrity of statesmen noticeably diminished.”
And another from the John Birch Society:
“We do not have the statesmen of the past. We have the politicians who have helped create this mess…”
Now these are the same groups that claim that the Constitutional Convention of 1787 was a “runaway” convention (see Conventional Disinformation for a discussion of this lie).
If the delegates to the 1787 Constitutional Convention did not honor their commissions (instructions), they would not be statesmen of honor and integrity. They would be dishonorable men of questionable character.
The schizophrenic logic of the John Birch Society and Eagle Forum goes like this:
The U.S. Constitution is a brilliant document that we must protect from an Article V convention for proposing amendments and it was illegally adopted by dishonorable men of questionable character who are the kind of statesmen of honor and integrity that can not be found today.
So which is it? Is the U.S. Constitution an illegally adopted document created by dishonorable men of questionable character? Or is it a brilliant document created by true statesmen of honor and integrity?
Clearly, the latter is the correct statement, but a question worth exploring is this: Are there statesmen of honor and integrity among us, and, if so, where do we find them?
Searching for statesmen of honor and integrity
Have you ever watched your Federal and State legislators in action? You can watch a Federal Congressional hearing on C-SPAN and a state legislative committee meeting on your state legislature’s website.
If you watch closely, you will notice some differences. First, your state legislators actually legislate. They discuss bills and amendments. There is a real legislative process at work.
You won’t see any of this at the Federal level. There you will find a lot of speeches, pontificating and criticizing “the other side of the aisle.” Any witnesses at a federal hearing are there primarily for the members of Congress to use as a foil for their grandstanding.
I would characterize a state legislative session as legislating.
I would characterize a federal legislative session as campaigning.
The other difference you will notice is that in a state legislative hearing, there is often public testimony. You are free to give public testimony just by showing up and signing in to testify.
You will not see such public testimony at a federal legislative hearing. That’s by invitation only. What do you think would happen if you showed up to testify at a federal legislative hearing in the same way you can at a state legislative hearing?
At a state legislative hearing, you would be allowed to testify and then go home. If you insisted on testifying at a federal legislative hearing, you would not be allowed to testify and possibly be phoning home for bail money.
I recently had an opportunity to interview Indiana Senator Mike Braun, who had previously served in the Indiana General Assembly. I asked him about the differences in his experiences in the state and federal legislatures.
Here is what he had to say about his time in the Indiana General Assembly...
"I was on Ways and Means and everything that we spent money on went through committee and it was done tediously and efficiently and when we came up with a budget, the top line was always going to be less spending than what we took in and we believed in rainy day funds and cash reserves... the big difference is we took it through regular order"
...and here is what he had to say about serving in the U.S. Senate.
"We will get a huge bill dropped in our lap two or three days ahead of time that were crafted behind closed doors. I’m an appropriator now. I can’t believe they made me one because they never like my recommendation of living with our means... [in the General Assembly] you live by process and by statute and or amendments and you had to be responsible fiscally. Here there’s none of that."
So here is the point I am trying to make: If you are looking for "the politicians who have helped create this mess," you will most likely find them in our federal government. If you are looking for statesmen of honor and integrity, you will most likely find them in your state legislature.
Why is this the case? Because our legislators, both federal and state, are largely products of their environments:
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- State legislators are much more accountable to their constituents. The average federal representative has around three-quarters of a million constituents. The average state representative has around 60,000 constituents. (In California, the average state representative has about half a million constituents. In New Hampshire, the average state representative has around 3,500 constituents. See Ballotpedia)
- Most state constitutions place restrictions on their legislatures which are sadly lacking at the federal level. These include balanced budget requirements, requiring that bills be limited to a single subject, and prohibitions on subsidies.
- Most state legislators are true citizen-legislators. They have a career outside the legislature and serve part-time as state representatives and senators.
The Cornerstone of the Constitution
Our founders knew where to find true statesmen of honor and integrity. They are found in our state legislatures. After all, before they were called to draft our U.S. Constitution, the founders were state legislators themselves.
As a result, our state legislators are the cornerstone of our U.S. Constitution. The founders trusted them with a number of important powers. That is why they are required in Article VI of the constitution to be “bound by oath or affirmation to support this constitution.”
Among the powers the founders granted to state legislators were setting the parameters for elections, choosing electors to choose the president and vice-president, and, prior to the 17th amendment, choosing who represented their state in the Senate. These powers are referred to as “Federal Functions.”
So when I compare the environments and day-to-day operation of the state and federal legislators, it is no wonder that the founders trusted the state legislators with their most important federal functions in Article V: The power to propose amendments, a power which is also granted to congress, and the sole power to ratify amendments directly or through ratifying conventions.
No amendment makes it into the constitution without the approval of three-fourths of the state legislatures. The founders relied on the true statesmen of honor and integrity found in our state legislatures to be the ultimate protector of the supreme law of the land.
Our state legislators are the cornerstone of our constitution and it is in the state legislatures that we will find the Washingtons, Madisons, and Hamiltons of today.
Allow me to introduce you to some of them.
In 2016 and again in 2023, Convention of States held a simulated Article V Convention to propose amendments. Commissioners attended from all 50 states.
These overview videos will introduce you to some of the true statesmen of honor and integrity who experienced the simulated convention.
You should also view some of the proceedings of the simulated convention and compare it to what you see of the federal government on C-SPAN.
You be the Judge
So you can judge for yourself, take a look at the following videos of some of the state legislators who exemplify true statesmen of honor and integrity.
True statesmen of honor and integrity or politicians who created this mess? You decide.
