Week 2: CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT NOTES

OVERVIEW

  • Definition of Constitutional Amendment: A formal change or addition proposed to the Constitution of the United States.

  • Importance: Amendments are essential legal instruments used to adapt the Constitution to changing societal needs.

EQUAL RIGHTS AMENDMENT (ERA)

INTRODUCTION TO THE ERA

  • First Introduced: 1923.

  • Text of the Amendment: "Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex." (Source: Bardes, Shelley, Schmidt)

RATIFICATION OF THE ERA

  • Congressional Approval: The ERA was approved by both chambers of Congress in 1972.

  • Ratification Process: It was then sent to state legislatures.

  • Ratification Requirement: Required 38 states for ratification.

  • Initial Deadline: The deadline for ratification was originally set for 1979, then extended to 1982.

  • Outcome: Failed to achieve the necessary 38 state approvals by the extended deadline.

  • Current Status: Despite 38 states voting to ratify, legal resolutions regarding the 1982 deadline and subsequent rejections by states are pending.

  • States that failed to ratify: Include Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia.

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT PROPOSALS AND FACTS

GENERAL FACTS

  • Total Proposed Amendments: From 1789 through January 3, 2025, approximately 11,985 measures have been proposed.

  • Typical Proposals: Congress typically proposes around 200 amendments every two years.

  • Committee Process: Most proposed amendments do not progress beyond Congressional committees.

AMENDMENT RATIFICATION STATS

  • Sent to States for Ratification: Since 1789, Congress has sent 33 amendments to the states.

  • Ratified Amendments: Only 27 have been ratified; the first ten being known as The Bill of Rights.

  • Articles of Confederation Requirement: Required a unanimous vote of all thirteen states for ratification.

HISTORICAL AMENDMENT PROPOSALS

19TH CENTURY PROPOSALS

  • Dueling Ban Amendment (1838): Proposed after the duel between Representatives William Graves and Jonathan Cilley, this amendment aimed to prohibit any individual involved in dueling from holding federal office.

RELIGIOUS-BASED PROPOSALS

  • Christian Amendment (1863): Proposed to acknowledge the "Christian God" in the Preamble of the Constitution. Similar attempts in 1874, 1896, 1910, and last in 1954, never reached a Congressional vote.

NAME CHANGE PROPOSAL

  • "United States of the Earth" Amendment (1893): Proposed by Representative Lucas M. Miller to change the country’s name.

20TH CENTURY AMENDMENT PROPOSALS

AMENDMENT TO ABOLISH THE SENATE

  • Proposed by Victor Berger (1911): Suggested abolition of the U.S. Senate, seen as corrupt and ineffective. The 17th Amendment mandating popular election of Senators was passed shortly after.

AMENDMENT ON INTERMARRIAGE

  • Proposed by Seaborn Roddenbery (1912): Aimed to forbid interracial marriages. Although it failed at the federal level, several states enacted laws against interracial marriage until they were deemed unconstitutional by the 1967 Supreme Court decision in Loving v. Virginia.

WEALTH LIMITATION PROPOSAL

  • Maximum Wage Amendment (1933): Proposed by Wesley Lloyd to limit individual wealth accumulation to $1 million to prevent economic disparity and avoid future economic crises like the Great Depression.

21ST CENTURY AMENDMENT PROPOSALS

  • Repeal of 16th Amendment: Introduced by Representative Steve King (Iowa), aimed at abolishing federal income tax.

  • Equal Opportunity to Govern Amendment: Proposed by Orrin Hatch (Utah) to allow naturalized citizens to hold the office of President or Vice President, in response to the eligibility of Arnold Schwarzenegger.

  • Pardoning Amendment: Introduced by Representative Al Green (Texas) in 2017, this amendment would prohibit the President from granting themselves a pardon.