COS Article V Convention Status
At present, the legislatures of 19 states have fully passed and transmitted applications to Congress for the specific purpose of calling a convention for “proposing amendments that will impose fiscal restraints on the federal government, limit its power and jurisdiction, and impose term limits on its officials and members of Congress.” The wording of these applications are based on the efforts of Convention of States, also known as COS Action/ COS Project, co-founded by COS President Mark Meckler. Only 15 more states are needed to trigger a risky convention. To ensure they don’t reach the required three-fourths or 34 states, residents of the 19 states with outstanding COS Con-Con applications are urged to get rescission resolutions passed.
If you currently reside in a state without a “live” or outstanding COS Con-Con application, The John Birch Society encourages you to educate other residents in your state, along with elected state legislators, about the deceptive tactics of COS Action and the real risks with Congress calling an Article V convention. Above all, urge your state legislature to oppose and vote against the passage of any new such COS applications.
To view and take action against currently-introduced Con-Con application resolutions visit our State Action Alerts page and/or the Take Action section of this action project.
COS Poses Threat to 2nd Amendment
COS has maintained that “Alterations to the 2nd Amendment cannot be on the table” at a COS-type Article V convention. However, when a COS supporter asked on Facebook why couldn’t the Second Amendment be updated at a COS Article V convention, Convention of States Project answered back that “Clarification Clauses” such as the supporter was referring to are “very much on the agenda” of many COS study groups around the country. So much for the COS assurance that a COS-type Article V convention wouldn’t threaten the Second Amendment!
Watch the 3-minute video above, “Tricked Into Gun Control,” for more details on the COS threat to the 2nd Amendment.
COS Claims Convention “Limited”
The Convention of States (COS) official website poses the question: “Can an Article V Convention be Limited to a Single Subject?”
The COS answer to this question is: “Yes. The text, history, and purpose of Article V all point to the ability of the states to limit a convention to the consideration of a single topic or set of topics.”
However, The John Birch Society has maintained since the 1980s that an Article V convention cannot be limited. Watch the above video, “An Article V Convention: Can It Be Limited?”, for the reasons why the JBS says Article V conventions have the inherent power to be “runaway” conventions.