Amend the Constitution
to Appoint Members
to Congress Instead of Electing Them?
News
Analysis by Jim Day
Since 9/11 there has been an incredible rush by
the President and Congress to protect
the citizens of the
There is no question that something had to be
done to try to prevent another 9/11 from happening and, without a doubt, the
perpetrators of 9/11 had to be tracked down and punished.
During the past 21 months, while all of the
above took place, there were many voices raised in concern over how these
measures were effecting or, potentially could affect, the foundational freedoms
accorded citizens by our Constitution.
Objections however were quickly side stepped or marginalized with a number of
rationalizations; some of which had merit, others did not.
The bottom line reality is the fact that
Now a new threat to freedom has emerged. Out of
fear that a terrorist attack might wipe out a majority of our government
leaders (Congressmen and Senators) an organization known as the Continuity of
Government Commission (COG) has suggested that instead of electing Congressmen
and Senators they should be appointed should something disastrous happen. This
Commission has suggested that the Constitution
be amended as quickly as possible to accommodate their recommendations.
Governors now appoint Senators when
vacancies arise before an election and House members are elected through
special elections.
The Good Guys
Fortunately a new committee of prominent
conservatives has been formed to combat this surprising attempt by men who
should know better than to try to turn Congress into an appointive body rather
than an elective body -- even in the event of a national emergency. The new
committee, which is headed by Phyllis Schlafly,
president and founder of Eagle Forum, is called the Committee to Preserve an Elected Congress (CPEC) and was formed to
coordinate opposition to a report which was released June 4 by the COG.
"They should know," said Schlafly, "that the direct election of members of
Congress who are accountable to we the
people is the centerpiece of the American constitutional system and has
been a major factor in preserving our American liberties. To take direct
elections away from the American people and give the power to appoint someone
to Congress is simply a terrible violation of the Constitution, and an amendment that should not be passed."
According to CPEC member and constitutional
authority Professor Charles Rice, the plan to change the
CPEC members believe that it would be a terrible
mistake to abandon our representative government in the face of terrorism, and
it certainly is not necessary. Instead, we should adhere to the Constitution itself and make use of the
rules changes passed by the House in February, as well as expedited procedures
for filling vacancies passed by state legislatures.
Other members of CPEC include; Janine Hansen,
Dr. James McClellan, William K. Shearer Esq. and Dr. Edwin Vieira.
The Bad Guys
Norman Ornstein, a congressional scholar at the
American Enterprise Institute hatched the idea for the Continuity of Government
Commission, which was launched in the fall of 2002 right after the 9/11 attack.
The Commission was formed to study and recommend reforms to ensure the
continuity of our governmental institutions in the event of another
catastrophic attack.
The Commission is an American Enterprise Institute
(AEI) and Brookings Institution project headquartered at AEI and funded by
the Carnegie, Hewlett, Packard, and MacArthur Foundations.
Former Presidents Jimmy Carter and
Gerald Ford are the honorary co-chairs of the Commission and Lloyd Cutler
and Alan Simpson are the chairmen. The Commission includes members who have
served in government at the highest levels including two former House Speakers,
Republican Newt Gingrich of Georgia and Democrat Tom Foley of
End Note
When I first saw the list of committee members,
chairmen, etc., of the COG, and who was funding this organization, I thought to
myself, “Now there’s a real rogues gallery!” Then, when I read what they were proposing to do, I about fell off
my chair.
Folks, we already have a system to replace the
President, Vice President, Congress and Governors of all 50 states. The system
is called “elections.” Under our Constitution WE THE PEOPLE are supposed
to elect our leaders – NOT have them chosen for us!
What we have in the COG is a bunch of elitists
utilizing the Hegelian Dialectic Process
who are out to take away our freedom to choose our
leaders. That’s the bottom line! WE THE
PEOPLE need to put a stop to this nonsense – NOW!
The MetroVoice will be
keeping a close watch on this movement and will be reporting more in-depth in a
later issue.
In the mean time, I would suggest that everyone
call or write their Congressman or Senator and tell them not to give any
credence to this idea.
For more information on the Committee to Preserve an Elected Congress (the Good Guys) contact Phyllis Schlafly at (314)
721-1213.