National convention can fix government

Our government is broken. Congress has an approval rate lower than 20 percent. They can't even solve a “no brainer” of immigration reform or a balanced budget, and the list goes on.

The Supreme Court is often politically biased and sometimes legislates from the bench. While the president can veto Congress and Congress can override the president, no one can overturn the court.

Suggested amendments include term limits for Congress and overturning Supreme Court decisions if the president and two-thirds of Congress repeal it.

The framers of our Constitution wisely made a provision in Article V that the people could call for a constitutional convention. They wanted to be sure that if our government got too corrupt or politically stalemated, there would be a second mechanism to amend the Constitution. In reference to Article V of the Constitution, Alexander Hamilton wrote, “We can safely rely on the deposition of the State Legislature to erect barriers to the encroachment of national authority.”

No one can deny that we and our states' rights are being increasingly encroached by our federal government. So, how can we make these amendments? Having a national convention, assembled at the request of the legislatures of at least 34 of the 50 states. Ratification is required by three-fourths of the states. Ask your family, friends and neighbors to contact their state legislators and ask them to support an Article V convention.

Ivan Hardt

Cedar Rapids