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PaperclipPerfector  3mo ago (text post)   26208 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of January 22, 2024

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Can you imagine a US Constitutional amendment that, if proposed, would actually get passed these days?

The relevant part of the US Constitution is:

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.

So, either 2/3 of both the House and the Senate, or 2/3 of the states must propose it, and then 3/4 of the state legislatures or conventions in those states must support it, for it to become part of the Constitution... as I understand it at least.

What sort of possible amendments could you imagine would actually pass and become part of the US Constitution in today's political climate, if they were proposed?

I find this to be an interesting question because it is a barometer of what the various factions of US politics actually agree on, despite their various differences, and also a barometer of how much polarization there is in today's US political situation.

Age limits for Congress and/or the Presidency. It’s simple to understand and therefore could have a popular groundswell of support. The Constitution already has age minimums for these elected offices. Public opinion polling shows that a majority of Americans are fatigued of old people like Trump and Biden running the show, so there could be bipartisan support. State legislatures already have age limits for certain other privileges such as obtaining a driver’s license (or needing to retake a driving test at a certain age). I could definitely see this happening especially in the next few years.

You’d probably need an effective date say ten years in the future to get support of current older politicians. Perhaps pair with a better pension for any politician that ages out under the amendment

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