April 23, 2021
Tulsa – Yesterday evening, our Convention of States Oklahoma State Director John Guinn spoke to the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association (OK2A), the state’s leading advocate for Second Amendment Rights, which works to return, protect and expand the liberties of Oklahoma gun-owners.
John’s remarks opened quoting conservative luminary, patriot, and staunch Article V supporter Mark Levin, who stated that Americans were now living in a “post-constitutional republic.”
The director defined this as the “structure of the Constitution is broken.” Elected leaders consistently ignore the enumerated powers as defined within the Constitution, and discard the intent of our Founding Fathers’ idea of limited government.
Director Guinn emphatically believes our simple, original three-page U.S. Constitution--which established a limited government--has been replaced with a 3,000-page “annotated” Constitution perverted by activist judges and the “alphabet” agencies of a bloated federal government that mandate 3,800 to 4,000 new regulations annually.
Regularly usurping the state legislatures, elected officials propose bills that are unconstitutional. Guinn specifically cited HR1 (intended to expand voting rights), Executive Orders on gun control, and most recently a bill to make Washington, D.C., the fifty-first state. Director Guinn offered a clear and sound explanation of how our republic landed in this situation.
The Roberts Supreme Court proved itself unreliable on issues that are clear violations of the Constitution. State Director Guinn contends that resolutions to these issues will not be fixed via the courts, or Congress, or the presidency. It is up to the people of the United States to remedy our ills and save our nation. We have a moral imperative to do so.
We the People are the answer to our constitutional woes. Article V is our national prescription. Article V is the tool We the People need to restore our founding principles. In quoting the detailed Federal Convention transcriber James Madison, the director noted, “We need the moral courage of virtue” in our nation.
To restore morality and virtue in our nation and government, Director Guinn identified five first-principle concepts. First, we restore the rule of law with justice, not social justice. Next, restore economic freedoms that led America for over 150 years.
Third, a return to and restoral of limited government. Fourth, we must have a restoration of virtue in our nation. Lastly, a balanced budget to control our national debt. To get these first-principle concepts back at the state level where they belong, we must use Article V.
The director dissected Article V to the audience, explaining the steps to a convention. He updated our state resolution’s status of removal of the “sunset clause,” which previously limited the life of our resolution until 2023. In honor of his memory and work to establish the Convention of States and Article V concept, our state resolution now bears the title “The United States Senator, Dr. Tom Coburn Resolution of 2021.”
In closing, he recalled two quotes from Dr. Coburn: “Have we forgotten, what we tolerate, we empower?“ and “We enable deception when we don’t confront the lies.”
Restoration of the constitutional system in our republic is in our hands.
Disclaimer: Thomas A. Jensen is a retired U.S. Navy cryptologist, historian, and State Content Writer for Convention of States Action Oklahoma. His articles and editorials comment on current events impacting the U.S. Constitution and Convention of States. Opinions offered are strictly his own.
