The Urge to Amend

Constitutional change occurs spasmodically. Of the 24 amendments, in 178 years of Constitutional history, 17 were enacted in three fairly short periods: the Bill of Rights in 1791, the Reconstruction amendments from 1865 through 1870, four others around World War I. The 1960s may go down as the fourth era of amendment.

There have been two amendments since 1960: one gave Washingtonians the vote in presidential elections; the other abolished poll taxes in federal elections. Last month, Congress sent to the states for ratification what is potentially the 25th Amendment, dealing with presidential disability and succession. Last week the Senate debated an other proposed amendment that has wide support. Sponsored by Minority Leader Everett Dirksen, it would soften the Supreme Court's one-man, one-vote ruling as applied to state legislatures.

Vote at 18? Nor is this all. This year 314 constitutional amendments have been introduced in the House. Ninety-eight deal with apportionment, 65 would give equal rights to women, 41 concern religion. Some of the others would establish a uniform voting age of 18, reform or abolish the electoral college, repeal the income tax, forbid federal-budget deficits except in time of national emergency, and double the two-year term of House members. Most of these also have been introduced in the Senate.

The traditional procedure is for amendments to originate in Congress, be passed by a two-thirds vote in each house, and then be ratified by three-quarters of the states. But the Constitution provides an alternative route. If two-thirds of the states (34) petition it, Congress must call a national convention, which can originate new amendments. Proposals of this body become part of the Constitution when ratified by three-quarters of the states (38).

States' Rights. In 1962 the General Assembly of the States, an unofficial organization comprised mostly of state legislators, proposed three amendments by the national-convention method. One dealt with state legislative apportionment; the other two would give two-thirds of the states the right to amend the Constitution without recourse to Congress or a national convention, and establish a court of state judges to review certain types of Supreme Court decisions. In response, 23 state legislatures have asked for a national constitutional convention to consider at least the apportionment issue.

There is some uncertainty as to just what would happen if 34 states lodged formal petitions with Congress to hold a national constitution convention, because there has never been one and the Constitution is vague about details. But there is no doubt that the urge to amend is running strong in the '60s.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.