 | Convention Issues |
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Please state your willingness to have the convention call include the following issues: Ending lifetime tenure of federal judges Creating the office of Regional Vice President, selected by the electoral college in each region, with 6 year term Creating federal regions and regional congresses (state number of regions - I like 7) Constitutionalizing regional court systems appointed by RVPs and having one SCOTUS member from each region and the Chief Justice appointed by the POTUS (or selected from the membership, either with our without replacement) Procedures for admitting new regions or changing regional boundaries subject to the deciennual census Recognizing the start of human life at ______ (conception (scientifically incorrect), gastrulation (scientifically correct, but legally problematic), the begining of the second trimester, assisted viability, viability) - the current absolute standard is birth - although regulations at the state level regarding viability are permitted under Roe with a health exception under Doe. Allowing states or regions to determine when life begins (a bad idea, since abortion and non-abortion states is as toxic a difference as slave and free states or regions - although regional variation is much more tolerable than by state) Defense of marriage (either nationally or allowing regional variation) Balanced budget (at least regionally, possibly nationally) Repeal income tax (problematic unless the debt is paid off first) Limit income tax collection to times of declared war and/or to pay off the national debt Term limits for congress (at least on the regional level) Creation of a national Senate with two members per region - with regions of equal electoral vote strength, with six year terms, staggered Selection of the POTUS by an electoral college made up of regional VPs and the National Senate, with a new selection every two (four, six, eight, ten, twelve years) or even service at the pleasure of the college Pooled finance of congressional elections (and above) with donations to a blind trust that is split among all candidates who successfully participate in a district or state caucus with a 15% of participation rule for funding Flag burning ban School prayer amendment Private school funding amendment (may not be necessary with Blaine Amendment repeal in the federal courts) I'm not in favor of all of these. I am especially not in favor of the socially conservative ones re flag burning, prayer and marriage and limiting judicial tenure. Ironcially, marriage is the most likely to get a convention called, although the regional government amendments, which I do favor, are the kind of thing for which a convention should be called, since they are not blatantly ideological and would improve governance by making the office of POTUS doable. State which ones you favor, which you oppose and which you would add. |