The Fundamentals of Self-Governance pt. 5 - Convention of States

This week, we took a look at the four ingredients that sustain self-governance in a nation: the freedom muscle, limited government, virtue, and civic duty.

Today, in conclusion, we will examine a fifth component of self-government that is unique to America: Convention of States.

First, however, we must admit that the aforementioned “ingredients” are deficient in America today. People have become too reliant on the government and are no longer used to governing themselves. This is largely because our government is no longer limited. Many would argue this problem first began because the people, lacking in virtue, elected to Washington politicians who were also lacking in virtue. Of course, the problem could have been solved if only we took our civic responsibilities seriously, but unfortunately, too many of us failed to take action.

You can see how all four of these things are inseparably connected. If a deficiency resulted in the loss of freedom, we can reasonably conclude that reviving these beliefs and practices would restore freedom.

But how can we restore self-governance when the federal government refuses to relinquish its control and power over the American people? Even if we found renewed interest in virtue and civic duty, Washington would continue to grow apace, right?

That’s where Convention of States comes into play.

Our brilliant Founders foresaw a day when the national government would be so divorced from reality it wouldn’t matter how hard the people tried to rein it in – it would just keep getting bigger and bigger, trampling on its citizen’s rights in the process.

However, the Founders did not want us to be powerless in such a scenario, so they gave us an amendatory convention in Article V of the Constitution. This fail-safe would enable the states to do what power-hungry political elites would certainly refuse to do: pump the brakes on a runaway federal government.

Today, as self-governance lingers on its dying breath, it would be foolish to not call a Convention of States. Through the Article V process, We the People would be empowered to limit the power and jurisdiction of the federal government, impose fiscal restraints, and place term limits on federal officials.

Ultimately, we would be empowered to bring decision-making powers back to the American people.

Once 34 states officially call for an Article V Convention (19 states have already done so) an amendatory convention would be triggered, and there's nothing the bureaucrats in Washington can do to stop it. At the convention, delegates would propose amendments reinforcing the Constitution's original meaning, thereby putting Congress and the rest of the federal government back in line.

Convention of States is truly a self-governing people’s last line of defense against tyranny. Yes, we need to rebuild our freedom muscle. Yes, we need virtue and a sense of civic duty. But we also need something a little more to tip the scale back in our favor.

Millions of grassroots patriots are fighting to make the Convention of States a reality. In fact, our movement boasts the largest grassroots army of self-governing activists in American history. Not only would calling a Convention of States preserve freedom for future generations, it would also be the greatest single act of self-governance America has witnessed yet.

To claim your place in the self-governing army, sign the petition below!