JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – The House passed a resolution Thursday morning calling for a constitutional convention with under Article V of the U.S. Constitution with the objective of curtailing federal government overreach.
Once 34 states have agreed to similar resolutions, a convention would be called.
Rep. Eric Burlison, R-Springfield sponsored the resolution and said it was an important tool at the people’s disposal to protect people from abuses by the government.
“Our founding fathers made it clear that states should be ready and willing to defend our liberties when the federal government abuses its authority,” he said. “The convention of states is our vehicle to push back against the continued overreach from Washington, D.C. and I hope we will see other states join us as we work to rein in a federal government that has grown out of control.”
Ryan Johnson, president of the Missouri Alliance of Freedom also praised the resolution as an important first step on the road to curtailing the power of the federal government.
“Reining in the overreach of the federal government is a top priority. The states can and should assert themselves within our federalist system to force the federal government to balance the budget now and bring to heel runaway deficit spending by amending the Constitution. The Missouri House of Representatives has taken an important step towards restraining Washington D.C.’s overreach by joining with several other states in calling for a convention. I am grateful for the leadership of Paul Curtman and Eric Burlison on this issue,” he said.
During debate on the House floor, members argued that federal authority has reached an unacceptable level and that the only redress available to the people was the use of the Article V right to call a constitutional convention.
“Washington D.C. is broken but the Constitution offers a solution bigger than the problem. By joining together the states can amendment the Constitution and remind the federal government that it was the states that birthed it not the other way around. Government should be the servant not the master. It is time to restore the balance,” Johnson said.
The Constitution has never been amended via an Article V. According to sweetliberty.org, Missouri would become the 30th state with an open call for a constitutional convention, though Missouri’s call is limited to a convention for the purpose of reining in government overreach.
The resolution passed by the House, HCR57, has a sunset period of five years.
