The Supreme Court becomes more hostile; is it time to roll out amendments?

[More Than A Feeling]

Now that we will be plagued by yet another Bush-appointed justice for a generation or more, is it time to start thinking about seriously pushing for new amendments to the Constitution?

If the progressive movement is going to continue to fight the battle of ideas for the constitution, we need other methods than relying on the Supreme Court to side with us. So we go over their heads, and give them no choice but to side with us, because the basic words they must use to rule will be written in our own penmanship.

Personally, I think the time has come to rein in the ever-growing power of the imperial presidency. Bush has revealed weaknesses in the system that the original document cannot handle. Could the founders have imagined that the President would take so many vacation days, or demand such secrecy and top-down administration? Millions of workers have to account for how they spend their time at work every day. The president can do whatever the fuck he wants with his time. Bush could spend the whole day playing video games, and we would never know, because of the secrecy.

Amending the structure of the government to strengthen checks and balances is a much better use of amendments than discrimination against minorities. Our amendments will make theirs look petty and small. It could also help us continue to build the grassroots in every state as we fight to get the state legislatures to agree. Most importantly, we could practice selling big ideas and getting people to agree, rather than watering down our ideas to whatever people already think.

So, do you agree we should call for new amendments, and if so, what do you think they should be?

[phaseolus]

1. Might be an exercise in futility??

We need someone who knows more than I do about constitutional matters to weigh in here, but -- without clear Democratic/Progressive majorities in (2/3? 3/4?) of state legislatures, might be the wrong time to propose constitutional amendments.

In the interim I think we'll have to get our majorities back at the state level, and do everything we can to block any stupid constitutional amendments proposed by the right wing should any come along.

The national nightmare scenario would be a second constitutional convention, run by the right. If such a thing came to pass it would destroy America as we know it. I haven't ever heard discussion of this, but you just *know* this is being discussed in Federalist Society chapters, at Patrick Henry Law School, and other places. Hopefully the talk is only theoretical...

[More Than A Feeling]

2. How many candidates could run on a new amendment?

You propose the policy, then if people like it, you get people elected based on their promise to implement it. You build the structure, the candidates will come.

Is what people are running on now so special and exclusive that we can't add a promise to protect the American people from an out of control executive, or whatever else we decide should be enshrined for future generations.

We must fight the radicals at every turn, and that includes engaging them on changes to the constitution. We fight their amendments with our own, and make them look ridiculous for even suggesting theirs. They claim out of control court, we counter with out-of-control executive.

Then the scenario you suggest will never come to pass.