Things Our Constitution Needs

[Demeter]

OpEdNews

Original Content at http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_thomas_b_070722_things_our_constitut.htm


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July 24, 2007

Things Our Constitution Needs

By tabonsell

While most knowledgeable persons admit that our Constitution may not be perfect, it is the best such political document ever written. There are some things that could improve the Constitution, not all of them radical alterations. The Founders knew at the outset that such amending will need to be done periodically, so they wrote into the document a method of change. They were wise enough not to anticipate future shortcomings of the Constitution; that is our job. Here are some proposals for major changes, some for minor tweaking.

1) Public financing of elections:

The federal government would set aside $1 per US citizen per year~ based on the most recent census ~ to finance presidential elections. The money would keep pace with population growth but not inflation, thereby controlling costs of future elections....

2) Eliminate the income tax and institute a profits tax :

We should fund government with three budgets and no crossover to borrow money from one by another. There must be no running away to Dubai (Halliburton) or the Caymen Islands (numerous companies) to avoid paying US taxes. Do business in the US and make a profit, pay US taxes, with no exceptions...

3) Treaties on war and commerce.

Such actions are a problem that few notice. The Constitution places the power to declare war and to regulate international commerce with the full Congress. But it gives the Senate and President the power over treaties. And since Treaties are the "supreme law" of the land" (Article VI) the House has no say in the matter....

4) Personhood of corporations.

We must remove personhood status of corporations and leave them strictly to Congress's power to regulate commerce. A 1886 Supreme Court decision granted corporations the same rights as living persons under the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution under bizarre reasoning....

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Authors Bio: Thomas Bonsell is a former newspaper editor (in Oregon, New York and Colorado) United States Air Force cryptanalyst and National Security Agency intelligence agent. He became one of American journalism's leading constitutional experts through years of study at Georgetown University Graduate School of Government in Washington, D.C. He is the author of "The Un-Americans: Trashing of the United States Constitution in the American Press", a critique of the mainstream media for ignorance of, or disdain for, our constitutional principles of self-government. He left newspaper work years ago, disgusted at the direction the Fourth Estate -- under the mismanagement of ineffectual, out-of-touch, can't do executives -- was taking away from honest responsible journalism and the observation that there was no place in the mainstream media for a progressive, or liberal, constitutional "expert". Bonsell is an honors graduate of Woodbury College (Los Angeles, California) with a bachelor of business administration degree. He is profiled in Marquis Who's Who in America. Personal motto: Have brain; will use.

[TheOtherMaven]

1. Add a couple of other things

* A strict, ironclad rule against nominating anyone who has a close relative as Governor of any State

* More details on what constitutes an impeachable offense (and what DOESN'T) - and a REQUIREMENT to impeach when these conditions are met! (I know it already says "SHALL" - it needs to say "MUST"!)

* An absolute ban on Executive Orders and Executive Privilege, both of which have been insanely over-abused by this Administration.

[Demeter]

2. And NO Pardoning the Staff

If somebody you hired does some crime and is convicted, you can't do a thing about it. History will judge if they were railroaded, and the next Presidents will have the option.

[Prophet 451]

3. Add an overhaul of judicial nominations

The lifetime term that was supposed to insulate judge's from political pressure has ended up doing exactly the opposite. I would suggest judicial nominations would be put forward by a panel (say, eleven members, politically mixed naturally) of distinguished lawyers, legal theorists, experts on jurisprudence. I'd suggest that the nomination would then be submitted to Congress but that just gets you into the spiral of filibuster/cloture games that Repubs love to do whenever they have the numbers to get away with it. Literally just remove that power from the president entirely. It's just too powerful and long-lasting a decision to rest with one man.

Also, an independant commission for redistricting. This one's a no-brainer.

Final entry on my wish list: An outright ban on professional lobbyists. Amateur lobbyists, people who care about the issues are fine but professional lobbyists exist to subvert democracy, that's their whole job description. They trade political influence for money. That's bribery, it's just one step removed. Get rid of them and you might (might) start getting government for the good of the people again. At the very least, you take away big business's soapbox.