Get ready—the U.S. Constitution might soon look a little different.
Wisconsin and Nebraska have joined 15 other states in passing the Convention of States Resolution. They want all 50 states to meet together for a single purpose: to change the U.S. Constitution.
To make this convention happen, 34 states need to pass the resolution. With Wisconsin and Nebraska on board, its supporters have made it halfway to the goal.
When the nation’s founding fathers wrote the Constitution, they created built-in methods to amend it. Over its history, the United States has amended the Constitution 27 times. These amendments protect American liberties: free speech, the right to bear arms, the right to vote, and more.
How does an amendment happen? If two thirds of the House of Representatives and the Senate agree, they can propose amendments, which the states then ratify. Up until now, that’s how every constitutional amendment has come about.
But Article V of the Constitution describes another way to create amendments. If two thirds of all states agree, they can call a Convention of the States and propose changes to the Constitution. If three fourths of all states agree, those changes become official amendments.
That’s just what the Convention of States Project wants to do.
Others have attempted to call similar conventions in the past. So far, such a convention has never taken place.
But why call a convention now?
The Convention of States Project aims to restrict the power of the federal government, cut down on government spending, and create term limits for how long officials can stay in office.
The United States runs on a form of government called federalism in which individual states share authority with a central, federal (head) government. But exactly how should that power be divided?
The Convention of States Project says the federal government has too much power. The Project’s supporters point to issues like federal mask mandates and progressive agendas in education. They want to give power back to the states. Through a convention of states, they could change the Constitution without going through the federal system.
Americans have long disagreed over how much power states should have. The federal government hasn’t always used its power for good, but neither have the states. During the American Civil War, some states fought to protect the wicked institution of slavery. It took the federal government to abolish slavery for good through the 13th amendment.
Will limiting the federal government solve America’s problems? If 17 more states pass the Convention of States Resolution, we’ll find out.
Why? It’s hard to know how power should be divided, but those with power need godly wisdom to use it for good.
