The Annoyed Man wrote: ↑Sun Jan 31, 2021 11:46 amThat said.... I would more than welcome such a convention occurring in the wake of a successful revolution/CW2/Balkanization, in which the cause of liberty is represented by the majority, and is immune to the quisling lunatics of the left. In
that kind of light, I'd be very interested in how you would write that amendment....or would it require more than one amendment?
I would write it as one amendment, though it would be long. As we saw with the Bill of Rights, where 12 amendments were originally proposed, writing it as multiple amendments allows parts of it to never be passed. I kind of like the idea of a convention to modify the Constitution at the end of CW2. It might be a way to preserve the union after all.
This list contains the things I can thing of right now and may not be complete. I am sure I have thought of other things in the past that I am not remembering as I write this. I am sure that everyone will find some parts in this that they will agree with and some that they will disagree with. I am not sure of the language of all of them, but this will get the general idea across:
1. In interpreting this Constitution, always interpret the guarantee of rights in the broadest possible terms and the granting of power to the government in the most stringent terms possible.
2. All rights in this Constitution apply to individual people and to groups of people equally. Rights may only be restricted for people who are involuntarily confined, either as a result of mental illness or as punishment for a conviction for committing a crime.
4. No governmental agency at any level may make any law or rule that discriminates against any person in any way for any reason, including but not limited to race, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age (other than having reached the age of majority), national origin, previous servitude, national origin, economic status, political affiliation, occupation, or personal relationships. All laws must treat all people equally, including applying to governmental employees and elected officials. Congress shall make a law that defines the age of majority for all federal purposes. Each state shall pass a single law that defines the age of majority for all state purposes in that state.
5. Where this Constitution uses the term "commerce between the states", it means only business transactions that actually cross state lines. It does not refer to anything that "might affect" such transactions.
6. Where this Constitution uses the term "shall not be infringed", it means that no law or rule shall be made that restricts that right in any way, including a choice of how to exercise that right.
7. When this Constitution uses the term "promote the general welfare", it refers to the welfare of the country as a whole. This cannot be used to promote any individual's welfare, either as a single person or as a group. This includes laws designed to promote the welfare of each and every individual as individuals.
8. Congress shall set rules for elections to any national office, including President, Vice-President, Senator, or Representative. These rules shall include requiring proof of citizenship and identity, registration, and conduct of the election. Elections for state offices or offices in political subdivisions of states are to be run by the rules the state sets. No federal ballot may show any party affiliation or indication of incumbency. No person who is eligible for the office as defined in this Constitution may be barred from the ballot. All rules for placing a name on a federal ballot must apply equally to all persons, whether party affiliated or not or incumbent or not.
9. The president will be the person who gets the most votes in the electoral college. The Vice President will be the person who gets the second most votes in the electoral college. States may award their electoral votes either to the person who wins the popular vote in their state overall, or by splitting the votes by who wins each congressional district with the two votes for senatorial districts going to the person who wins overall.
10. Senators will be selected by the state legislature. The 17th Amendment is hereby repealed.
11. All taxes must be levied equally on all people or companies. Income taxes must tax all income equally. There shall be no exemptions and no deductions. The tax rate must be a flat rate for all incomes. Property taxes must tax all properties at the same rate with no exemptions or deductions. Customs Duties and Excise taxes may vary by the commodity being taxed or the nation of origin, but not by the company or person paying the tax. Property, including money or anything of value, that is inherited may not be taxed or counted as income.
12. No governmental agency may give any money or anything of value to any person, corporation, agency, or other government except for in payment for goods received or labor performed under a contractual basis. This does not exclude pensions or retirement benefits being paid to employees of that government. Any currently existing program of distribution of money or things of value that is designed to aid the poor may continue for a maximum period of ten years to allow for a reasonable phase out of the program.
13. In exception to paragraph 11, the Federal Social Security program will be phased out in the following manner:
A. All people who are currently receiving benefits from the program will continue to receive their payments as defined when this amendment is ratified.
B. All contributions made by people who are over 30 years old and less than 50 years old when this amendment is ratified will be paid back to the contributor immediately. This includes both the employee's contribution and the employers' contribution. These people will not be eligible for any future benefits under the program.
C. All people who are over 50 years old and not yet receiving benefits under this program when this amendment is ratified will be given a choice of continuing to pay into the system and receiving benefits according to the current formulas (tax rates and benefits payout formulas) or receiving the payout as described in paragraph B.
D. All people under the age of 30 when this amendment is ratified will be excluded from this program in the future. They will not receive any refund of contributions and will not pay any further contributions.
14. No person may be a permanent resident of the district dedicated to the national capitol. The federal government will purchase any residences currently in existence in this area at the appraised tax value for the proeprty, plus pay the resident a reimbursement for the actual costs of moving not to exceed $10,000. After this occurs, all federal agencies will be based in offices locate in this district.
15. The United States of America shall not hold or own territories outside the boundaries of the nation. All currently held territories will hold a referendum for the citizens to decide between the territory becoming a state and the territory being granted independence. Any territory voting for independence shall be established as an independent nation within one calendar year of the referendum. Once granted independence, the United States of America shall owe no obligation to the former territory. If the territory votes for statehood, it shall be admitted as a state within one calendar year of the referendum. The citizens of the state shall have full rights, privileges, and responsibilities as any other citizen of the nation. Territory that is conquered in war after the ratification of this amendment shall be held no more than ten years before being granted freedom and may not be made states.
16. A natural born citizen is any person born within the boundaries of the nation who has at least one parent subject to the laws of the nation, or who is born outside the national boundaries but has one parent who is a citizen of the United States of America. Congress shall make laws governing immigration into the nation and granting citizenship in it. None of these laws may discriminate based on the home nation of the immigrant. No citizenship can be granted to any person who entered or remained in the nation in violation of any law passed by congress.
17. The Bureau of Indian Affairs is hereby disbanded. All land contained in tribal reservations is given to the people of the tribe, either broken up as individuals or to the tribe as a whole. All state laws apply on these lands and the residents of the lands may not make their own laws unless the state allows the land to incorporate as a political subdivision of that state. Any funds held in trust for the tribes are divided equally amongst the members of the tribes.
18. Any state may decide to leave the union. To do so, the state must hold a referendum with at least 66% of the people voting agreeing to secede. If this occurs, the secession will be negotiated and take affect within one calendar year of the referendum. Citizens of the former state must choose whether to remain citizens of the United States of America or become citizens of the new nation. In this case, dual citizenship cannot be recognized. If a secession cannot be negotiated within the time period stated, the United States of America will remove all of its employees and removable property from the state. It shall retain ownership of any currently owned non-removable property.
19. All actions taken by any office of the government are criminal actions, and all rights in the Constitution apply. No government can create or maintain any law purporting to create a civil infraction.
20. The Code of Federal Regulations is hereby abolished. Congress is stated as the sole agency for making laws at the federal level and it cannot delegate that power to any other agency. Any federal law that needs interpretation will be interpreted by the courts, not by administrative or executive branch agencies.
21. All federal laws and agencies must be specifically authorized by one of the delineated powers assigned to Congress. Each law passed must specify the power authorizing it.
22. Other than evidence to be used in a criminal trial that is seized under the Fourth Amendment procedures, no agency of any government may seize any property without a court order after a trial with the owner present.
NOTE: Edited to add 19 and 20 (as renumbered in edit #2) that I forgot in my first draft.
Edit 2: added lines 21 and 22. I forgot about them and was reminded in a post below. Also added another definition of a term, the general welfare clause, as paragraph 7 and renumbered all clauses from that point.