Constitutional Convention

Constitution Check: Would an Elected Supreme Court Get More Respect?

Lyle Denniston | Posted 04.10.2012

Read More: Supreme Court, Alexander Hamilton, Gordon Wood, Joseph R. Grodin, Constitutional Convention, Gay Marriage, Health Care, Maureen Dowd, Judicial Branch, Federalist Papers, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, Barack Obama, US Supreme Court, Supreme Court Justices, Supreme Court Health Care, Politics News
Lyle Denniston

Among scholars who want the U.S. Supreme Court changed, most want term limits, not elections. The reason seems obvious, given the politics of the day.

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Lost Provision Orders Do-nothing Congress Be Publicly Horsewhipped

Spencer Green | Posted 12.21.2011

Read More: Congress Amendments, Congress Laws, Congress Constitution, Constitution Amendments, Founding Fathers, Constitutional Convention, Do Nothing Congress, Founding Fathers Constitution, Comedy News
Spencer Green

In a stunning discovery, scholars have uncovered a long-lost provision in the United States Constitution which demands that all future do-nothing Congresses be horsewhipped in a public setting.

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Occupy Wall Street: If South Americans Can Reform Their Constitutions, Then Why Not Us?

Nikolas Kozloff | Posted 12.21.2011

Read More: Hugo Chavez, Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy, Occupy Wall Street, Constitutional Reform, Constitutional Amendment, Constitutional Convention, Constitution, #Occupywallstreet, New York News
Nikolas Kozloff

Occupy Wall Street protesters are now on a high and are set to take their movement to the next level. Take, for example, the radical notion of amending the Constitution to address protesters' demands.

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Report from the Conference on the Constitutional Convention

Lawrence Lessig | Posted 11.30.2011

Read More: Tea Party Patriots, Mark Meckler, Constitutional Convention, David-Segal, Lawrence Lessig, Politics News
Lawrence Lessig

Most Americans can surely agree that Congress, as much as possible, should be unconstrained by incentives that compel it to behave differently than would a representative sample of Americans, coming together to try to do what's best for our country.

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The Constitution We Nearly Had

Robert J. Spitzer | Posted 11.15.2011

Read More: Alexander Hamilton, Treaties, Presidential Veto, Founding Fathers, Constitution Day, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson, Constitutional Convention, U.S. Constitution, Constitution, Original Intent, Tea Party, Rick Perry, Politics News
Robert J. Spitzer

Imagine a very different Constitution -- one where Congress could kill any state law, where a twenty-six member Senate controlled treaty-making with other nations, and where the president's veto was exercised jointly with the Supreme Court.

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A Conference on the Constitutional Convention

Lawrence Lessig | Posted 10.10.2011

Read More: Meckler, Constitutional Convention, Tea Party Patriots, Lessig, Politics News
Lawrence Lessig

As many of us believe that our nation has come to another moment of crisis in its capacity to govern, some of us believe we must begin to talk through whether fundamental reform through a convention will be required.

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Civility: Not a Traditional American Value

David O. Stewart | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Violence, History, Politics, Congress, Declaration of Independence, Gabrielle Giffords, Constitutional Convention, Vitriol, Gabrielle Giffords Shooting, Politics News
David O. Stewart

Obama's call for greater civility in our political discourse has great surface appeal. But in the early days of the nation, violence among politicians was commonplace.

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Court Nullifies Election: Better Luck Next Time

Iris Erlingsdottir | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Iceland Economic Crisis, Iceland Financial Crisis, Johanna Sigurdardottir, Constitutional Convention, George Washington, Iceland, Johanna Sigurdardottir Iceland, World News
Iris Erlingsdottir

If the Icelandic government decides to hold a second election for the Constitutional Convention, it is to be hoped that the powers-that-be go beyond simply tweaking the ballots and the voting booths.

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Iceland's Supreme Court Nullifies Constitutional Convention Election

Iris Erlingsdottir | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Constitutional Convention, Constitution, Iceland Economy Collapse, Iceland, World News
Iris Erlingsdottir

The results of the Icelandic elections to determine the members of the Constitutional Convention were nullified by the Icelandic Supreme Court today.

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You Say You Want a Constitution?

Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Constitutional Convention, Constitution, Social Experiments, Iceland, Single Transferable Vote, Johanna Sigurdardottir, Pots and Pans Revolution, Proportional Representation, Sovereignty, Banking Crisis, Financial Collapse, World News
Silja Bára Ómarsdóttir

The Beatles' song "Revolution" has been in my mind all day. That's because this morning I woke up as a newly elected representative to the country's new constitutional assembly.

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A Historic Year for State Con-Cons

J.H. Snider | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Constitutional Convention, Illinois Constitutional Convention, Michigan Constitutional Convention, Montana Constitutional Convention, J. H. Snider, Maryland Con-con.org, Connecticut Constitutional Convention, Redistricting Jury, isolon.org, Maryland Constitutional Convention, Iowa Constitutional Convention, Campaign Finance, Term Limits, Redistricting, Legislative Transparency, Politics News
J.H. Snider

Even if a constitutional convention makes only a slight improvement in the quality of state democracy, the payback can dwarf the cost.

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Constitution Day: Celebrate The Birth Of America With A New Illustrated Constitution (PHOTOS)

Lena Tabori | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Slidepollajax, Sam Fink, First Amendment, US Constitution, Constitutional Law, Bill of Rights, Constitution Day, First Amendment Rights, Constitutional Convention, U.S. Constitution, Constitution, Books News
Lena Tabori

The words are from our founding fathers. But the illustrations are all Sam's. He is ninety-four now and his passion for freedom is unabated. To him, the Constitution epitomizes the unique American attachment to freedom.

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Constitution Day: Celebrate the Bill of Rights

John W. Whitehead | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: James Madison, Constitution Day, Bill of Rights, Thomas Jefferson, Constitutional Convention, Politics News
John W. Whitehead

James Madison's political courage and determination cannot be overstated. He was insistent, compelling, unyielding and ultimately triumphant.

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Generating "Radical" Ideas for Government Innovation -- A Starter List

Lenny Mendonca | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Constitutional Convention, California, Government Reform, Nick Clegg, Los Angeles News
Lenny Mendonca

Though the ambitious effort to reform California's broken system of government through a constitutional convention was stymied this year, the spirit of reform is alive and well in California and elsewhere.

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Disclose Act Isn't Nearly Enough, With or Without the "NRA Exemption"

David Segal | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Election Reform, Fair Elections Now Act, Campaign Finance Reform, Publicly-Funded-Campaigns, Constitutional Convention, Citizens United, Nra Exemption, Election, DISCLOSE Act, Politics News
David Segal

If Congress fails to act on the constitutional amendment to reverse the Citizens United ruling, there's another option: a constitutional convention.

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Were the Founding Fathers Alcoholics?

Stanton Peele | Posted 11.17.2011

Read More: Drug Addiction, Alcohol Addiction, Alcohol Abuse, Addiction and Recovery, Alcoholism, Temperance, George Washington, Constitutional Convention, Prohibition, John Adams, Founding Fathers, Thomas Jefferson, Colonial America, Healthy Living News
Stanton Peele

I want to talk about how much the founding fathers drank. Quite a bit. Just think what would happen if a politician today drank anywhere near as much as they did at that Constitutional party.

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Rhode Island's David Segal's Call for a Constitutional Convention

Lawrence Lessig | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Aclu, Segal, Lawrence Lessig, Constitutional Convention, Fourth Estate, Constitution, Politics News
Lawrence Lessig

It is impossible for any fair minded soul, whether Democratic or Republican, to look at the current state of the American democracy and not believe that something has gone profoundly wrong.

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A Call for a Convention

Lawrence Lessig | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Money and Politics, Corruption, Corporate Speech, Fair Elections Now Act, Constitutional Amendment, Lobbyists, Fair Elections, Constitutional Convention, Citizens United, Lawrence Lessig, Politics News
Lawrence Lessig

The problem in our democracy is not diversity; the problem is a Congress dependent upon the fundraisers. The problem is not corporate speech. The problem is the fundraising Congress.

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Diversionary Dangers of Amending the Constitution

Jeffrey Abelson | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Supreme Court, Civic Ignorance, Constitutional Amendment, Constitutional Convention, Political Ignorance, Larry Lessig, Citizens United, 30 Second TV Spot, Uninformed, Dysfunctional Democracy, Money in Politics, Special Interests, Citizen, Political Corruption, Robert Borosage, Politics News
Jeffrey Abelson

Post Citizens United vs. FEC, Americans should be less concerned with who spends money on campaigns and more concerned by ill-informed citizens who enable that spending to have a profound effect.

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Shake the System

Gavin Newsom | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Politics, California, Gavin Newsom, 2010 Elections, Economy, Constitutional Conv, San Francisco, Jobs, Constitutional Convention, Constitution, Elections 2010, Politics News
Gavin Newsom

If we're going to put California back on the leading edge, we have to fix our broken system. Please join me in supporting a California Constitutional Convention and help participate in shaping it.

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New Constitution Called For As Albany Disgust Rises

New York Times | NICHOLAS CONFESSORE | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Albany, Albany Politics, New York State Constitution, Constitutional Convention, New York State Politics, New York News

ALBANY - Few New Yorkers would disagree that state politics are broken. Even fewer are the number of proposed fixes - from term limits for lawmakers t...

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Small States with Big Power

Mike Lux | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Montana, Nebraska, Iowa Citizen Action Network, Senate Finance Committee, Constitutional Convention, Iowa, Small States, Health Care Reform, Filibuster, Community Organizing, South Dakota, Forward Montana, Ruralvotes, Politics News
Mike Lux

Is it fair that the key gang of six negotiating health care in the Senate Finance Committee represent less than 3% of the nation's population?

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California Rising

Jim Selman | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: California Commission on Aging, Constitutional Convention, General Motors, Los Angeles, California, Politics News
Jim Selman

In many ways, California has always been an 'early adapter' in terms of social and technological trends. It has also been early in having its share of the problems we are now facing everywhere.

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Every Illinois County Voted Against The Constitutional Convention

Progress Illinois | Josh Kalven | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Illinois Constitutional Convention, Con-Con Election Results, Illinois Constitutional Convention Referendum, Con-Con Vote by County, Con Con Vote, Constitutional Convention, Election Results, Illinois Con Con, Chicago News

A Progress Illinois analysis of the 2008 general election results found that every county in the state voted heavily against the proposed 2010 constit...

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Bar Association To Appeal Con-Con Ruling

Associated Press | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Illinois Constitutional Convention, Con Con Appeal, Constitutional Convention, Chicago Bar Association, Con Con Ruling Appeal, Chicago News

The Chicago Bar Association says it will ask the Illinois Supreme Court to examine the process that put a constitutional convention referendum on the ...

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