Today I read of a measure filed in the House to enact a Constitutional amendment called the Repeal Amendment (New York Times, Kate Zernike). It would allow two thirds of the states to vote to repeal any federal law or regulation. What a dumb idea. And cowardly too.
Apparently conservatives think that this is the only way to limit the authority of the federal government which they find overly intrusive into private lives and business. Their case in point is the new health care bill and the requirement for all Americans to purchase health insurance. As if there is no other way to change the policies of the U.S. Government.
It’s a dumb idea because potentially two thirds of the states, representing a minority of U.S. population, could dictate to the majority policy and legislation. That’s not what the Founders intended. If the Founders had felt that the powers of the central government needed to be limited – and they did – they would have included a repeal mechanism in the first draft of the Constitution.
It’s cowardly because if conservatives want to pass or repeal legislation they should elect enough members of Congress to do just that. If they have a friendly president, they can get him to sign the bill. If not, they can get a two-thirds majority like the Founders had intended.
We will see if this idea gets any traction, which I doubt.