June 4, 2025 The Best Source of News, Culture, Lifestyle for Culver City, Mar Vista, Del Rey, Palms and West Los Angeles

The Dangerous Constitutional Convention Measure

By Tom Elias

 

 

 

 

 

 

The California ballot has seen plenty of dangerous propositions over the years, and yet another one may face voters wherever they cast votes next November.

Fortunately, virtually all such questionable proposals have been beaten at the polls or struck down by courts if voters acted irresponsibly. There was the AIDS quarantine measure put forward by crackpot presidential candidate Lyndon LaRouche in 1986, which aimed to place everyone with the disease in remote detention camps. Would Ervin “Magic” Johnson be part owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and president of the Lakers today if that one had passed?

There was the 1994 Proposition 187, which sought to deprive undocumented immigrants of health care, schooling and anything else its sponsors could think of. That one passed handily, endorsed by then-Gov. Pete Wilson, but was swiftly struck down by a federal judge. And so on.

Now comes a danger of a different sort, embodied in a seemingly innocuous measure that’s about to begin circulating with hopes of getting a yes-or-no vote just over a year from now.

It’s titled “The California Call for a Constitutional Convention,” and it contains some fine ideas, including calls for Constitutional amendments to ensure equal pay for equal work and limit corporate “personhood” to invalidate the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. The initiative also calls for California to participate in a constitutional convention to push for creating a peaceful way for states to secede from the Union and/or negotiate treaties with foreign countries, and has a provision demanding that federal funding be distributed to states in proportion to what their taxpayers put into the federal kitty.

Most of those aims are laudable, but there’s absolutely nothing to guarantee that any of these ideas would attain reality if this measure passes. Rather, there’s the definite possibility for major alteration to the Bill of Rights, which now protects things like free speech, freedom of the press, freedom of association and guarantees there will be no official state religion.

How could this happen when the convention call includes very specific subjects to be taken up and none involves the Bill of Rights? Easy. Once you begin a constitutional convention, the delegates can take it where they like.

That’s one reason why even though many states have officially called for a convention to enshrine a balanced-budget amendment, that call has never gotten support from three-quarters of the states, as required to get a convention started.

There’s also little chance that even if California calls for a convention to take up its plentiful legitimate grievances, it will get the needed support from other states.

The sponsors of the new initiative, which goes by the abbreviated term CalConCon, in effect concede this. They maintain on their website (www.calconcon.com) that any convention call ever issued by a state – even 100 years ago or more – can be included in the total needed now.

That’s because just as the Constitution sets no limit on where delegates can take a convention, it also has no expiration date for convention calls, which now number 27. It’s an unfortunate omission by the Founding Fathers, who turn out to be fallible after all.

Marcus Ruiz Evans of Fresno, whose 2012 book California’s Next Century called for semi-sovereign status for the state and essentially began the Calexit secession movement that spawned this convention initiative, maintains there would be no “runaway convention.”

But the campaign website notes that “the U.S. Constitution makes no mention of rescinding an application (for a convention) or limiting (it) to a single subject…”

Still, says Ruiz, many academics have forecast a runaway convention would not happen. But how does anyone know where activists from Texas or Montana might take the meeting? Or whether there would be neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klansmen among the voting delegates?

It’s true California several years ago called for a constitutional convention to get rid of the Citizens United decision. Fortunately, in part because of the dangers involved, no such meeting occurred.

Is it really worth risking free speech and freedom of religion or the right to bear arms for the unlikely possibility of winning the right to secede peacefully?

The only rational conclusion is that sponsors of this measure are being shortsighted, concerned more for their immediate goals than about making sure Americans’ fundamental rights remain untouched.

Related Posts

(Video) Some of the Damage Caused By Vandals at Malibu High School Overnight

June 4, 2025

June 4, 2025

40 to 50 people, who are suspected to be students or recent alumni, used eggs, flour, and markers to deface...

Biggest Night of the Year: Don’t Miss GMCLA’s ‘Dancing Queens’

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

Culminating its 46th season, the Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles will grace the crowd with Dancing Queens, celebrating iconic...

Pluto TV and Oscar-Winning Director Sean Baker Team Up to Host Free Weekend Screenings

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

Popcorn Challenge Interactive Event Set for Westfield Century City Mall  The historic Gardena Cinema, one of the last single-screen, family-operated...

Former ‘Real Housewives’ Husband Sentenced to Over 7 Years for $15 Million Client Fraud 

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

Federal Judge Rejects Plea for Medical Placement, Orders Restitution and Prison Time Disgraced former attorney Tom Girardi was sentenced Tuesday...

Carjacking Suspect Arrested After Police Chase Ends in Crash in Inglewood

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

Suspect Was Wanted for an Armed 2023 Carjacking in Culver City Wanted on multiple felony charges stemming from a 2023...

Malibu High Targeted in Overnight Vandalism Spree; Investigation Underway

June 3, 2025

June 3, 2025

Destruction on Campus Prompts Sheriff’s Probe; Students May Face Charges Vandals caused extensive damage to the school property of Malibu...

A Season of Gratitude: After One Year in Business, Urban Jungle Continues Making its Mark

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Over the last year, Urban Jungle, an indoor and tropical plants nursery, has continued its mission to cultivate a place...

The soul’s greatest hits

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

From ‘Ave Maria’ to ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ and ‘Ode to Joy,” a Santa Monica concert raising funds to help fire victims...

LAPD Increases Security at Jewish Sites Following Colorado Flamethrower Attack

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Officials Ramp Up Patrols and Plan Emergency Response as Shavuot Concludes. Security outside Jewish institutions in Los Angeles has been...

The Peabody Awards Celebrate Bold Storytelling and Social Impact at Beverly Hills Gala

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Honorees Including Baby Reindeer, Shōgun, and The Only Doctor at In-Person Ceremony The Peabody Awards held their awards ceremony Sunday...

Chamber Music Palisades Presents an Afternoon of Beethoven, Brahms, Debussy, and More

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Brentwood Hosts Free Classical Concert with LA Philharmonic Greats Chamber Music Palisades will present a free community concert on Saturday,...

Massive Fire Engulfs Auto Shop, Shuts Down 10 Freeway Eastbound Lanes

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Explosions, Thick Smoke, and Downed Power Lines Disrupt Traffic in Palms A fast-moving fire broke out Sunday behind a commercial...

Alpine Floor & Home: A Legacy of Quality Since 1968

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Founded in 1968 with a single location, Alpine Floor & Home began as a humble family business with a clear...

Chin Chin to Close West Hollywood Location After 45 Years of Service

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

Iconic Sunset Plaza Restaurant Announces Final Day of Operations Chin Chin, the iconic Chinese eatery that has been a fixture...

LACMA’s $700M David Geffen Galleries to Open in 2026

June 2, 2025

June 2, 2025

New Structure Will Replace Original Midcentury Buildings Construction crews are entering the final stretch on the David Geffen Galleries, a...