Source: AP
Ex-Pennsylvania U.S. senator and former Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum was in Raleigh earlier this month with top legislative Republicans, including House Speaker Tim Moore, to a call for a constitutional convention, according to The Associated Press.
Santorum, Moore and other Republicans said the purpose of the “convention of states” would be to “rein in an ever-expanding federal government,” the AP reported.
A joint resolution was filed in the state House in late February formally seeking the convention. According to the U.S. Constitution, 34 states must pass resolutions calling for a convention in order to convene one. So far, 19 states have passed convention resolutions, according to the lobbying group Convention of States. Thirty-eight states would need to approve the proposed amendments in order to amend the Constitution.
The proposal put forth in North Carolina would limit the convention to amendments that only “address fiscal restraints and power limitations upon Washington and term limits,” the AP reported.
This proposal is not to be confused with another convention proposal introduced by Moore in February that focuses solely on congressional term limits. States don’t have the power to mandate term limits for members of Congress but do have the authority to set term limits for themselves as state legislators, but Moore is not in favor of such a move.
According to Santorum, the U.S. government is running up more debt than ever and exerting more power upon individuals, which is leading to divisions across the country.
The only solution, Santorum said, is calling a constitutional convention. “Washington is never going to fix itself,” he said in Raleigh.
Those opposed to a convention of states have said that convening one would lead to a free-for-all of amendments that could lead to extreme changes to the government.
Joint resolutions, such as those filed by state Republicans, are not able to be vetoed by Gov. Roy Cooper.
