The following was written by COS supporter, Susan Peed of Bumpass, Virginia, and originally published by The Central Virginian.
To the Editor,
I want to make a difference in how my government is run. I basically like the model. I’m just not happy with the execution.
What is my responsibility? It can’t be just to vote for one or two representatives, a congressman now and then.
What happened to the citizens’ rights to affect their government?
The Constitution, Article V, states two methods by which constitutional amendments may be achieved legitimately.
First, Congress may propose amendments that are supported by two-thirds of both chambers. This is the way most of our amendments are proposed.
The other way is this: the states can meet to propose amendments after two-thirds of them (34 states) notify Congress of their desire to do so on a specified proposal or topic.
In either case, proposed amendments to the Constitution must be ratified by three-quarters of the 50 states (38 states). These are grassroots efforts, fellow citizens!
The Convention of States project for self-government is rallying states around the nation to join the grassroots effort.
They want us to address three issues with the current efforts: impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, and set term limits on federal officials and members of Congress.
The commonwealth of Virginia currently has a petition with approximately 36,000 signatures on it.
There is no magic number, but we need enough signatures to impress our state representatives that we are serious enough to follow through.
Career politicians, a growing debt, and government overreach--these are big problems and you can be part of the solution!
To find out more, sign the petition. To volunteer, click here.
