Conservatives Hate the Constitution – Try To Work Around It

It Just Keeps Getting in the Way They Complain

Lost, like much was lost, in the discussions of the debt ceiling/deficit reduction plans is the fact that radical Conservatives want to change the Constitution by fiat so that they can impose amendments to the Constitution without that messy two-thirds vote that is required by that Document.

When the Founders wrote the Constitution, they provided for amendments to it, but recognized amending the Constitution was not something to be done without strong support from the people.  So the first requirement for enacting a Constitutional amendment is the approval of two-thirds of each House of Congress. No two-third approval, no amendment.

Now radical extremist Conservatives wanted to amend the Constitution to provide for a balanced budget, the so-called BBA.  But they lacked the two-thirds majority in both the Senate and the House.  So the logical, Constitutional solution would be for them to go out and elect enough House members and Senators to enact the amendment.  But Conservatives believe so strongly that they are right and the rest of us are wrong that they think they do not need to play by the rules.

In an unprecedented action, Conservatives decided that they could amend the Constitution by simple majority vote.  The mechanism was to require adoption of their BBA as a pre-condition for raising the debt ceiling. Since raising the debt ceiling was required to avoid long term total destruction of the U. S. economy and a total disruption of world financial markets, a simple majority passes a law that effectively says “adopt the BBA or the world economy dies”.  



Justice Scalia communing with Mr. Madison



So far this gambit by radical Conservatives has failed.  But they will be back again and again.  After all, this strategy is a lot easier than actually going out and winning elections.  As for objections from Madison, Monroe and Jefferson, well the only person those fellows talk to is Justice Scalia.  And even if they object, Justice Scalia won’t tell.