Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas In recent weeks pundits & columnists have called the prospect of a Constitutional Convention delusional and a Pandoras box that will allow politicians to fiddle with the Constitution. But Texas leaders who want to petition Congress to call a convention are on to something. A convention is not only one of the constitutional ways to begin the amendment process but also a proven way to motivate Washington to adopt needed reforms.
And we need a balanced budget amendment to get a handle on our out-of-control national debt.
Weve all heard the numbers. Our national debt is over $14 trillion and has increased by almost 33 percent since the beginning of the Obama administration. We are spending more than $30000 per household and borrowing more than 40 cents of every dollar we spend. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects the 2011 budget deficit to be $1.5 trillion which means it will be Washingtons third straight year of trillion-dollar deficits.
Our nations fiscal mess is not just a math problem. Government debt can crowd out private sector investment that instead could help create jobs for the more than 14 million Americans who are unemployed. Government debt increases our dependence on foreign governments including China and represents a crushing future tax burden for young parents and their children. Worst of all government debt represents a loss of freedom for every American because debt narrows the range of choices available for families businesses and even government itself.
Reducing our national debt has never been more urgent so thats why I recently introduced with more than 20 colleagues a joint resolution to propose a balanced budget amendment to our Constitution. A balanced budget requirement is a feature of nearly every state in the land including Texas. Nations such as Germany and Switzerland have proven the concept as well. In addition to balancing our budget our proposed amendment would also cap federal spending at 20 percent of gross domestic product and require two-thirds of both the House and the Senate to approve a tax increase.
States can also initiate the amendment process by petitioning Congress to call a constitutional convention which they should do if Washington ignores their concerns and those of the people. The Founders included that option because they foresaw that Congress might resist limits on federal power and they wanted to give the people the opportunity to propose amendments without congressional pre-approval.
The Founders knew that another convention could be unpredictable so they included safeguards to protect our form of government from radical changes. Article V requires that three-quarters of the state legislatures must approve any change to our Constitution whether proposed by Congress or by convention. That high standard ensures that no amendment could be approved without very broad support across America.
Far from being delusional popular support for a constitutional convention is a proven way to spur Congress to adopt long neglected reforms. The prospect of another convention prompted Congress to adopt the Bill of Rights. Other movements to call conventions resulted in the direct election of senators nearly a century ago and major budget reforms in the 1980s. I hope the Texas Legislature and those of other states keep the pressure on Congress to bring the balanced budget amendment to the floors of both houses and then to the states for ratification.
Some in Washington and even in Texas fear popular movements to amend our Constitution when they deserve our respect. After all We the People established our Constitution in the first place and we have amended it more than two dozen times to protect our liberties and make Washington function better. The people are not a threat to our government but its ultimate source of legitimacy and its greatest hope.
Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas In recent weeks pundits & columnists have called the prospect of a Constitutional Convention delusional and a Pandoras box that will allow politicians to fiddle with the Constitution. But Texas leaders who want to petition Congress to call a convention are on to something. A convention is not only one of the constitutional ways to begin the amendment process but also a proven way to motivate Washington to adopt needed reforms.
And we need a balanced budget amendment to get a handle on our out-of-control national debt.
Weve all heard the numbers. Our national debt is over $14 trillion and has increased by almost 33 percent since the beginning of the Obama administration. We are spending more than $30000 per household and borrowing more than 40 cents of every dollar we spend. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office projects the 2011 budget deficit to be $1.5 trillion which means it will be Washingtons third straight year of trillion-dollar deficits.
Our nations fiscal mess is not just a math problem. Government debt can crowd out private sector investment that instead could help create jobs for the more than 14 million Americans who are unemployed. Government debt increases our dependence on foreign governments including China and represents a crushing future tax burden for young parents and their children. Worst of all government debt represents a loss of freedom for every American because debt narrows the range of choices available for families businesses and even government itself.
Reducing our national debt has never been more urgent so thats why I recently introduced with more than 20 colleagues a joint resolution to propose a balanced budget amendment to our Constitution. A balanced budget requirement is a feature of nearly every state in the land including Texas. Nations such as Germany and Switzerland have proven the concept as well. In addition to balancing our budget our proposed amendment would also cap federal spending at 20 percent of gross domestic product and require two-thirds of both the House and the Senate to approve a tax increase.
States can also initiate the amendment process by petitioning Congress to call a constitutional convention which they should do if Washington ignores their concerns and those of the people. The Founders included that option because they foresaw that Congress might resist limits on federal power and they wanted to give the people the opportunity to propose amendments without congressional pre-approval.
The Founders knew that another convention could be unpredictable so they included safeguards to protect our form of government from radical changes. Article V requires that three-quarters of the state legislatures must approve any change to our Constitution whether proposed by Congress or by convention. That high standard ensures that no amendment could be approved without very broad support across America.
Far from being delusional popular support for a constitutional convention is a proven way to spur Congress to adopt long neglected reforms. The prospect of another convention prompted Congress to adopt the Bill of Rights. Other movements to call conventions resulted in the direct election of senators nearly a century ago and major budget reforms in the 1980s. I hope the Texas Legislature and those of other states keep the pressure on Congress to bring the balanced budget amendment to the floors of both houses and then to the states for ratification.
Some in Washington and even in Texas fear popular movements to amend our Constitution when they deserve our respect. After all We the People established our Constitution in the first place and we have amended it more than two dozen times to protect our liberties and make Washington function better. The people are not a threat to our government but its ultimate source of legitimacy and its greatest hope.
