There is currently a debate underway at the Idaho Capital, about how to address issues with our federal government.
The people tasked with serving us in Washington have amassed an astronomical $36 trillion of debt, and it goes up over a million dollars every 20 seconds. Each taxpayer in America would need to pay an additional $2,700/month in taxes, just to balance the budget (without even touching the debt). Yet it seems every fall, Congress debates how much higher the next omnibus spending bill should be, and by how many trillions the debt limit should be raised. Spending reductions are rarely discussed.
Unfortunately, increased federal spending facilitates increased government growth, followed by overreach, and ultimately challenges to state sovereignty. Citizens lose the ability to make choices in their own states. Idaho’s recent battle over the Lava Ridge Wind Project is one such case. President Trump has given Idaho a 4-year respite, but that may only last until the next administration takes office.
While a President can influence regulatory decisions, such as Lava Ridge, Congressional legislation limits his/her ability to restrain bureaucratic growth. All Presidents are bound by oath to follow the Constitution, which grants Congress the authority to define and fund government operations. Presidents can root out corruption and inefficiency, but many legal scholars consider refusal to comply with legislation an impeachable offense.
The spending, overreach, and apparent lack of interest in the will of the people has caused a collapse of public trust in the federal government. According to Pew Research, public confidence that the government “will do the right thing” has fallen from a high of 77 percent in 1964, to an abysmal 22 percent in 2024. Most Americans no longer believe their federal government is acting in accordance with their wishes.
The framers of the Constitution anticipated our current predicament, and provided a safety mechanism. Article V of the Constitution provides a means for states to band together, to legally – and peacefully – redefine how the federal government operates.
Article V provides two methods to Amend the Constitution. The first is for Congress to approve amendment proposals, which are sent to the states for consideration.
The second method is for two-thirds of the states to call for an Article V convention. At the convention, delegates from all 50 states craft amendment proposals which are subsequently sent to the states for consideration. Other than setting a time and place for the convention, the U.S Congress has no role in this process.
Regardless of whether proposals originate from Congress or a convention, they must be ratified by three-quarters of the states to become part of the Constitution. This high-bar for ratification is intended to make the process rigorous, and to mitigate the risk of radical changes to the Constitution.
Although the second method has never been used, the Idaho legislative leadership has heard the concerns of its constituents, and has concluded that now is the time.
Senator Todd Lakey and Representative Jordan Redman are sponsoring a resolution calling for an Article V convention to propose amendments for term limits, fiscal responsibility, and constraints on overreach. With a simple majority of both houses of the legislature, Idaho would become the 20th state calling for a convention. Given the number of other states which are also debating the issue, reaching the 34-state requirement seems achievable. Should the approach proposed by Sen. Lakey and Rep. Redman succeed, the states, the people, and future Presidents will be better empowered to hold the federal government accountable to those it is intended to serve.
To express your support for an Article V convention, visit https://conventionofstates.com/idaho and sign the petition.
