A More Perfect Constitution
Encyclopedia
A More Perfect Constitution is a non-fiction book by American political scientist Larry J. Sabato, published in 2007. In it, Sabato calls for a new constitutional convention
to update the United States Constitution
.
Sabato notes that, after the Bill of Rights
, there have only been seventeen constitutional amendments over the past 220 years, and makes the argument that a constitutional convention is overdue and that it is something that Founding Fathers
would have wanted. He offers 23 proposals for revising the Constitution.
's term in office and the number and terms of Supreme Court
justices to altering the structure of Congress
, modifying the Electoral College, and introducing universal national service.
Constitutional convention (political meeting)
A constitutional convention is now a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. A general constitutional convention is called to create the first constitution of a political unit or to entirely replace an existing constitution...
to update the United States Constitution
United States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
.
Sabato notes that, after the Bill of Rights
United States Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights is the collective name for the first ten amendments to the United States Constitution. These limitations serve to protect the natural rights of liberty and property. They guarantee a number of personal freedoms, limit the government's power in judicial and other proceedings, and...
, there have only been seventeen constitutional amendments over the past 220 years, and makes the argument that a constitutional convention is overdue and that it is something that Founding Fathers
Founding Fathers of the United States
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...
would have wanted. He offers 23 proposals for revising the Constitution.
Sabato's proposals
Sabato's 23 proposals run the gamut from changing the length of the U.S. PresidentPresident of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
's term in office and the number and terms of Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
justices to altering the structure of Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
, modifying the Electoral College, and introducing universal national service.
Congress
- Expand the Senate to 136 members to be more representative: Grant the ten most populous states two additional senators each, the fifteen next most populous states one additional senator each, and the District of Columbia one senator.
- Appoint all former Presidents and Vice Presidents to the new office of "National Senator".
- Mandate non-partisan redistrictingRedistrictingRedistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...
for House elections to enhance electoral competition. - Lengthen terms of Representatives from two years to three years, and set Senate terms to coincide with all presidential electionsUnited States presidential electionElections for President and Vice President of the United States are indirect elections in which voters cast ballots for a slate of electors of the U.S. Electoral College, who in turn directly elect the President and Vice President...
, so the entire House and Senate would be elected at the same time as the President. - Expand the size of the House of RepresentativesUnited States House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
to approximately 1,000 members (from current 435), so House members can be closer to their constituents, and to level the playing field in House elections. - Establish term limitTerm limitA term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms a person may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method to curb the potential for monopoly, where a leader effectively becomes "president for...
s in the House and Senate to restore the Founders' principle of frequent rotation in office. - Add a Balanced Budget AmendmentBalanced Budget AmendmentA balanced-budget amendment is a constitutional rule requiring that the state cannot spend more than its income. It requires a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures of the government....
to encourage fiscal fairness to future generations. - Create a Continuity of Government procedure to provide for replacement Senators and Congressmen in the event of extensive deaths or incapacitation.
Presidency
- Establish a new six-year, one-time presidential term with the option for the President to seek two additional years in a referendum of the American people.
- Limit some Presidential war-making powers and expand Congress' oversight of war-making.
- Give the President a line-item vetoLine-item vetoIn United States government, the line-item veto, or partial veto, is the power of an executive authority to nullify or cancel specific provisions of a bill, usually a budget appropriations bill, without vetoing the entire legislative package...
. - Allow men and women not born in the United StatesNatural born citizen of the United StatesStatus as a natural-born citizen of the United States is one of the eligibility requirements established in the United States Constitution for election to the office of President or Vice President...
to run for President or Vice President after having been a citizen for 20 years.
Supreme Court
- Eliminate lifetime tenure for federal judgesUnited States federal judgeIn the United States, the title of federal judge usually means a judge appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate in accordance with Article II of the United States Constitution....
in favor of non-renewable 15-year terms for all federal judges. - Grant Congress the power to set a mandatory retirement ageMandatory retirement ageMandatory retirement is the age at which persons who hold certain jobs or offices are required by industry custom or by law to leave their employment, or retire. Typically, mandatory retirement is justified by the argument that certain occupations are either too dangerous or require high levels of...
for all federal judges. - Expand the size of the Supreme Court from 9 to 12 to be more representative.
- Give federal judges guaranteed cost of living increases so pay is never an issue.
Politics
- Write a new constitutional article specifically for the politics of the American system.
- Adopt a regional, staggered lottery system, over four months, for presidential party nominations to avoid the destructive front-loading of primaries.
- Mend the Electoral College by granting more populated states additional electors, to preserve the benefits of the College while minimizing the chances a President will win without a majority of the popular vote.
- Reform campaign financing by preventing wealthy candidates from financing their campaigns, and by mandating partial public financing for House and Senate campaigns.
- Adopt an automatic registration system for all qualified American citizens to guarantee their right to vote is not abridged by bureaucratic requirements.
Universal national service
- Create a constitutional requirement that all able-bodied young Americans devote at least two years of their lives in service to the country.
National constitutional convention
- Convene a new constitutional convention using the state-based mechanism left to Americans by the framers in the current constitution.