FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Annie Stone, 703-217-1169
[email protected]
Philadelphia, PA (September 19, 2022) - Through the National Constitution Center’s (NCC) Constitution Drafting Project, teams of conservative, libertarian, and progressive scholars today revealed five proposed constitutional amendments they debated and drafted during a virtual constitutional convention held this past summer. At an event hosted by the NCC, Caroline Fredrickson, senior fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice leading team progressive, Ilan Wurman, associate professor at the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University, leading team conservative, and Ilya Shapiro, senior fellow and director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute, leading team libertarian, presented their proposed amendments, which include granting veto abilities to Congress, changing the impeachment process, and imposing term limits for Supreme Court justices. A recording of the program is available on the Center’s YouTube channel, and the amendments are available on the Center’s website.
Below is a brief summary of each proposed amendment:
- Amendment XXVIII: Eliminates the natural-born citizen requirement by stating that a president does not have to be born in the United States but must be a citizen having resided in the United States for at least 14 years.
- Amendment XXIX: Creates a legislative veto, whereby Congress can veto executive actions with majority votes in both the House and the Senate.
- Amendment XXX: Amends the current impeachment process by raising the standard for impeachment in the House but lowering it for conviction in the Senate; and clarifies that, in the six months after leaving office, a former officer can be impeached, and that the bar against future officeholding applies to both the presidency and vice presidency.
- Amendment XXXI: Imposes term limits on Supreme Court justices, fixes the number of justices at nine, and makes appointments automatic if the Senate does not act within three months to approve or disapprove.
- Amendment XXXII: Revises the process for proposing and adopting new constitutional amendments, making it easier by lowering the threshold for ratification from the current two-thirds of Congress and three-quarters of the states to three-fifths of Congress and two-thirds of the states.
The teams convened via Zoom over two days this August, to debate and deliberate various proposals, agreeing on the five resulting amendments. Earlier this year, the same three teams had drafted and presented their ideal constitutions.
“It’s so meaningful that three teams of scholars of different perspectives were able to agree on five proposed amendments to the Constitution,” said Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center. “The surprising consensus of the NCC’s virtual Constitutional Convention is a tribute to the possibilities for Madisonian deliberation and compromise in a polarized age.”
As part of the Constitution Drafting Project, team conservative includes Ilan Wurman, Robert P. George of Princeton University, Michael McConnell of Stanford Law School, and Colleen A. Sheehan of Arizona State University. Team libertarian includes Ilya Shapiro, Timothy Sandefur of the Goldwater Institute, and Christina Mulligan of Brooklyn Law School; and team progressive includes Caroline Fredrickson, Jamal Greene of Columbia Law School, and Melissa Murray of New York University School of Law.
The Constitution Drafting Project was generously launched with support from Jeff Yass.
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About the National Constitution Center
The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia brings together people of all ages and perspectives, across America and around the world, to learn about, debate, and celebrate the greatest vision of human freedom in history, the U.S. Constitution. A private, nonprofit organization, the Center serves as America’s leading platform for constitutional education and debate, fulfilling its congressional charter “to disseminate information about the U.S. Constitution on a nonpartisan basis.” As the Museum of We the People, the Center brings the Constitution to life for visitors of all ages through interactive programs and exhibits. As America’s Town Hall, the Center brings the leading conservative and liberal thought leaders together to debate the Constitution on all media platforms. As a Headquarters for Civic Education, the Center delivers the best educational programs and online resources that inspire citizens and engage all Americans in learning about the U.S. Constitution. For more information, call 215-409-6700 or visit constitutioncenter.org.
