
                  1993 Constitution Convention Fact Sheet

A constitutional amendment to require full federal funding of all FEDERAL
MANDATES handed down to the states is the new issue being used this year,
by the American Legislative Exchange (ALEC) and the National Taxpayer's
Union, to promote a Constitutional Convention on any pretext that will
catch on.

Three states have rescinded
    1.   Florida, Alabama, and Louisiana have rescinded their calls for a
         Constitutional Convention to balance the federal budget.  This
         leaves the U.S. 5 states away from the required 34.

Convention tried in 1976
    2.   A new Constitution called a Constitution for the Newstates of
         America was financed by the Rockefeller Foundation and published
         in 1974.  Nelson Rockefeller, then president of the U.S. Senate,
         engineered the introduction of HCR 28 calling for an unlimited
         convention in 1976.  Public opposition defeated this effort and
         convention backers went back to the states promising a limited
         convention which we are facing now.

The Newstates assault on the Bill Of Rights
    3.   Guns - Article I-B Sec. 8 states "bearing of arms shall be
         confined to the police, members of the armed forces, and those
         licensed under law."

    4.   Religion - Article I-A Sec. 8 states "The practice of religion
         shall be privileged."  Religious freedom would no longer be a
         right.

    5.   Jury Trial - Article VIII states that the judge decides if there
         is to be a jury.

    6.   Speech - Article I-A Sec. 1 states "Freedom of expression shall
         not be abridged except in declared emergency."

Other dangers
    7.   Farms - Rexford Tugwell, the lead author of the Newstates
         Constitution, said that private ownership of farms had not proven
         good for society.

    8.   Depression - Sen. Nancy Kassebaum's Committee on the
         Constitutional System says they want to wait until the U.S. is in
         a 1929 type depression to call a convention because only then
         would the public accept the radical changes they want.  So by
         passing another convention call or by not rescinding and moving
         them another state away from their goal, we are encouraging them
         to force a depression on us.

    9.   Schools - Article I-A Sec. 11 says that free education would only
         be for those who pass appropriate tests.

   10.   Entirely new Constitution promoted - Henry Hazlitt, an advisor to
         Jim Davidson's National Taxpayer's Union, has called for an
         "entirely new constitution" in his book A New Constitution Now.

   11.   Sen. Nancy Kassebaum's group, The Committee on the Constitutional
         System, is on record as wanting to use a convention to change the
         U.S. to a Parliamentary Government.

The end of the state legislatures
   12.   States to be abolished - Under a GSA plan, the 50 states will be
         abolished as specified in Article 2 of the Newstates Constitution
         and absorbed into 10 new states.

NO NEED FOR A BALANCED BUDGET AMENDMENT
   13.   Gramm-Rudman - When this push for a balanced budget amendment
         started in the 1970's, we did not have Gramm-Rudman Lobby to
         reinstate the deficit reduction targets.

   14.   Government waste - The Grace Commission Report identified enough
         government waste to more than eliminate the federal deficit.

   15.   Loopholes - All balanced budget amendments proposed by Congress
         have been designed to be bypassed in case of emergencies such as
         war.

   16.   The 10th Amendment - prohibits the federal government from being
         involved in anything not specified by the Constitution, and if
         even partially enforced would prove to be the desired balanced
         budget amendment.

   17.   Laws ignored - Some argue that a constitutional amendment is
         needed because a law can be ignored.  They miss the fact that the
         existence of foreign aid requires that the 10th Amendment be
         ignored.

   18.   Laws repealed - Some argue that a constitutional amendment is
         needed because a law can be repealed.  Prohibition was a
         constitutional amendment and it was repealed.

Congress has no option after the 34th call
   19.   No option - Some argue that the states must pressure Congress into
         passing its own amendment by making the 34th call.  But Article V
         reads Congress "shall call" a convention when two-thirds of the
         states petition.

   20.   The American Bar Association Constitutional Convention study
         states that "neither the language nor the history of Article V
         reveals an intention to prohibit another general convention."

   21.   A farce - Sen. Orin Hatch told Congress that a convention limited
         to one amendment would be a "farce."

   22.   Package of Amendments - The Committee on the Constitutional System
         stated in a press conference that it has a package of amendments
         ready if an unlimited convention should be held.

   23.   Competition - There are a number of issues for which states have
         called for a convention.  Their backers will all want to get in on
         the balanced budget convention if it is held.

State legislatures can be bypassed
   24.   Ratification - Article V gives Congress the power to bypass the
         state legislatures in favor of state ratifying conventions.
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