delhalew
3/28/2010, 09:50 AM
One of the lesser known Founders, he is one of my top three to five framers of our gubment.
We have Mason to thank for our Bill of Rights and he was especially well regarded by Jefferson.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1232.html
George Mason
Politics and Public Service, 1725-1792
George Mason was never a holder of high office, but was one of the most consistent voices for the protection of American rights during the Revolutionary generation. He was born in Fairfax County, Virginia, and after the death of his father was taken in by an uncle, John Mercer. Mason was educated privately and profited greatly from the titles in his uncle’s renowned library.
George Mason
As a young adult, Mason assumed control of Gunston Hall, one of the most magnificent residences in an area of grand homes. The plantation was known for its tobacco and orchards. George Washington was a neighbor and fellow investor in the Ohio Company. When that venture's speculative activities were ended later by the Crown, Mason took a radical turn in his thinking.
In the 1750s, Mason began a career in local public service. He was selected as a trustee of the town of Alexandria, a justice in the Fairfax County court system and a vestryman of Truro parish.
In 1759, Mason was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses, where he would become an ardent critic of many British programs. In 1766, during the Stamp Act crisis, he attempted to marshal economic pressure on Parliament by writing a letter to British merchants in an attempt to enlist their opposition to the stamp tax.
Three years later, Mason drafted the Virginia nonimportation agreement that followed the enactment of the Townshend Acts. In 1774, after Parliament had targeted Massachusetts with the Coercive Acts, Mason worked with Washington to summarize the constitutional case against the recent legislation in the Fairfax Resolves.
Mason served as a delegate to the Virginia Convention in 1775 and supported the decision to arm the commonwealth in preparation for a possible war. The following year, he served in the Virginia Constitutional Convention, where he made major contributions to the writing of a new governing document and drafted the Virginia Declaration of Rights, a statement of the inalienable rights of the colonists. His ideas, and some of his wording, were soon adopted by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence and by the states in their own bills of rights.
During the War for Independence, Mason played an organizational role in defending his state, but did not see service. He also worked for the disestablishment of the Anglican Church.
In post-war Virginia, Mason urged the cession of western land claims, a view that was not shared by speculators and the frontier population. Acting somewhat out of character, Mason agreed to attend the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, his concern for the well being of the nation outweighing his passion for staying at home. He was a major participant in the proceedings, but was deeply disappointed in the result. His criticisms of the final document included:
* the lack of a bill of rights, a position fully consistent with his longtime advocacy of individual liberties
* the centralization of too much power in the federal government; he was especially suspicious about the roles planned for the Senate and the federal judiciary
* the constitutional recognition given to the institution of slavery. Despite being a slaveowner, Mason felt that all slaves should be freed and that it was unconscionable for the new government to trumpet liberty, but deny it totally to the slaves.
Mason was one of three delegates at the Convention who refused to sign the document. He took his opposition back to Virginia, where he teamed with Patrick Henry and other Anti-Federalists in an unsuccessful attempt to defeat ratification. He published his criticisms in a newspaper essay that was intended to counter the arguments presented in The Federalist; his campaign against the Constitution cost him his friendship with Washington.
Mason later turned down a U.S. Senate seat from the Virginia legislature, but experienced the great satisfaction of seeing the adoption of the Bill of Rights in 1791. Those 10 amendments, along with Amendment XI that limited judicial power, were modeled after his Declaration of Rights. James Madison, a close friend and confidant, was a driving force behind this victory in the first session of the new Congress.
George Mason was one of the Founding Fathers whose name is not widely recognized today; his lack of interest in elective office and his contempt for long-winded political proceedings cost him lasting fame. His contempraries, however, understood the depth of his contribution. Jefferson labeled him the "wisest man of his generation."
My favorite contribution of Mason was this:
The other way to amend the constitution: the article v. constitutional convention amendment process.
INTRODUCTION
The Constitution specifies two different ways for amendments to the Constitution to be proposed. The first method allows Congress to propose amendments when such amendments are approved by at least a two-thirds vote in both houses. (1) The States can then ratify the proposed amendments. The second method is less familiar to most people, as it has never been used. This method requires Congress to call a constitutional convention to propose amendments when two-thirds of the States apply for such a convention. (2) Many questions exist about the use of this amendment process. May the convention's scope be limited to certain subject matters? If so, who may limit it? How are state applications to be tallied--separately by subject matter or cumulatively, regardless of their subject matter? What is the relevance of the convention method of proposing amendments? Why should it ever be used? Some of these uncertainties about the convention have most likely contributed to states' reluctance to use the method. Yet, as of 1993, almost 400 convention applications had been submitted to Congress by the States since 1789. (3) This Note will attempt to explore the history of the Convention Clause in Article V and answer some of the questions about its use.
II. HISTORY
A. The Constitutional Convention
Much of the confusion about Article V comes from its ambiguous language. This ambiguity is the result of compromises at the Philadelphia Convention of 1787 between groups that wanted to exclude the national legislature from participating in the amendment process and groups that wanted to grant the national legislature the sole authority to amend. (4) The earliest proposal for an amendment provision, contained in the Virginia Plan, stated that "the assent of the National Legislature ought not to be required" to amend the Constitution. (5) Convention delegates privately circulated a proposed constitution authored by Alexander Hamilton (6) that gave the power to amend the Constitution to the national legislature and the power of ratification to legislatures or conventions in the States. (7) The Convention's first official action regarding the method for amending the Constitution was to adopt Resolution 17, which stated that the Constitution should contain some means for amendment, but did not specify the particular process to be used. (8)
The first reference to the use of a convention requested by the States is found in drafts of the Constitution kept by the Committee of Detail. (9) After several revisions, the Committee's final statement stated that "[t]his Constitution ought to be amended whenever such Amendment shall become necessary; and on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the States in the Union, the Legislature of the United States shall call a Convention for that Purpose.' (10) Hamilton and others argued that in addition to State legislatures, Congress should also have the power to propose amendments, and the Convention approved the addition of language giving Congress the power to propose amendments. (11) James Madison proposed new language that removed reference to a convention and gave the national legislature sole authority to propose amendments whenever it would "deem necessary, or on the application of two thirds of the Legislatures of the several States." (12) This language was adopted by the Convention, with no discussion about the elimination of the references to the use of conventions. (13)
On September 15, as the Convention was reviewing the revisions made by the Committee of Style, George Mason expressed opposition to the provisions limiting the power to propose amendments to Congress. According to the Convention records, Mason thought that "no amendments of the proper kind would ever be obtained by the people, if the Government should become oppressive, as he verily believed would be the case." (14) In response, Gouverneur Morris and Elbridge Gerry made a motion to amend the article to reintroduce language requiring that a convention be called when two-thirds of the States applied for an amendment. (15) Madison stated that he did not object to the convention method, but in expressing what proved to be prophetic concerns, he pointed out that "difficulties might arise as to the form" the convention would take. (16) Morris and Gerry's motion was unanimously adopted. (17) After Roger Sherman expressed concern that the Constitution could be amended to take power away from smaller states, (18) the clause stating "that no State, without its consent" could be deprived of "equal suffrage in the Senate" was added. (19) No further changes were made to the text of Article V, and the final version of the Constitution was adopted. (20) The final text of Article V reads:
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall
deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution,
or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two
thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing
Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to
all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when
ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several
States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one
or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the
Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be
made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and
eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses
in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State,
without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage
in the Senate. (21)
B. Attempts to Use the Convention Method
Although the convention method for proposing amendments has never been used, the threat of a convention has sometimes spurred Congress to action. During debates over the Constitution's ratification, the threat of a second constitutional convention was a key factor in Congress proposing the Bill of Rights. (22) There have been several occasions where the number of state applications for a convention was close to reaching the required two-thirds; at least once during the course of events leading to the adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment, the threat of a constitutional convention may have spurred Congress to act preemptively to propose the desired amendment itself. (23) The prospect of a convention may also have played a role in leading Congress to propose the Twenty-first, Twenty-second, and Twenty-fifth Amendments. (24)
We have Mason to thank for our Bill of Rights and he was especially well regarded by Jefferson.
http://www.u-s-history.com/pages/h1232.html
George Mason
Politics and Public Service, 1725-1792
George Mason was never a holder of high office, but was one of the most consistent voices for the protection of American rights during the Revolutionary generation. He was born in Fairfax County, Virginia, and after the death of his father was taken in by an uncle, John Mercer. Mason was educated privately and profited greatly from the titles in his uncle’s renowned library.
George Mason
As a young adult, Mason assumed control of Gunston Hall, one of the most magnificent residences in an area of grand homes. The plantation was known for its tobacco and orchards. George Washington was a neighbor and fellow investor in the Ohio Company. When that venture's speculative activities were ended later by the Crown, Mason took a radical turn in his thinking.
In the 1750s, Mason began a career in local public service. He was selected as a trustee of the town of Alexandria, a justice in the Fairfax County court system and a vestryman of Truro parish.
In 1759, Mason was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses, where he would become an ardent critic of many British programs. In 1766, during the Stamp Act crisis, he attempted to marshal economic pressure on Parliament by writing a letter to British merchants in an attempt to enlist their opposition to the stamp tax.
Three years later, Mason drafted the Virginia nonimportation agreement that followed the enactment of the Townshend Acts. In 1774, after Parliament had targeted Massachusetts with the Coercive Acts, Mason worked with Washington to summarize the constitutional case against the recent legislation in the Fairfax Resolves.
Mason served as a delegate to the Virginia Convention in 1775 and supported the decision to arm the commonwealth in preparation for a possible war. The following year, he served in the Virginia Constitutional Convention, where he made major contributions to the writing of a new governing document and drafted the Virginia Declaration of Rights, a statement of the inalienable rights of the colonists. His ideas, and some of his wording, were soon adopted by Thomas Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence and by the states in their own bills of rights.
During the War for Independence, Mason played an organizational role in defending his state, but did not see service. He also worked for the disestablishment of the Anglican Church.
In post-war Virginia, Mason urged the cession of western land claims, a view that was not shared by speculators and the frontier population. Acting somewhat out of character, Mason agreed to attend the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia in 1787, his concern for the well being of the nation outweighing his passion for staying at home. He was a major participant in the proceedings, but was deeply disappointed in the result. His criticisms of the final document included:
* the lack of a bill of rights, a position fully consistent with his longtime advocacy of individual liberties
* the centralization of too much power in the federal government; he was especially suspicious about the roles planned for the Senate and the federal judiciary
* the constitutional recognition given to the institution of slavery. Despite being a slaveowner, Mason felt that all slaves should be freed and that it was unconscionable for the new government to trumpet liberty, but deny it totally to the slaves.
Mason was one of three delegates at the Convention who refused to sign the document. He took his opposition back to Virginia, where he teamed with Patrick Henry and other Anti-Federalists in an unsuccessful attempt to defeat ratification. He published his criticisms in a newspaper essay that was intended to counter the arguments presented in The Federalist; his campaign against the Constitution cost him his friendship with Washington.
Mason later turned down a U.S. Senate seat from the Virginia legislature, but experienced the great satisfaction of seeing the adoption of the Bill of Rights in 1791. Those 10 amendments, along with Amendment XI that limited judicial power, were modeled after his Declaration of Rights. James Madison, a close friend and confidant, was a driving force behind this victory in the first session of the new Congress.
George Mason was one of the Founding Fathers whose name is not widely recognized today; his lack of interest in elective office and his contempt for long-winded political proceedings cost him lasting fame. His contempraries, however, understood the depth of his contribution. Jefferson labeled him the "wisest man of his generation."
My favorite contribution of Mason was this:
The other way to amend the constitution: the article v. constitutional convention amendment process.
INTRODUCTION
The Constitution specifies two different ways for amendments to the Constitution to be proposed. The first method allows Congress to propose amendments when such amendments are approved by at least a two-thirds vote in both houses. (1) The States can then ratify the proposed amendments. The second method is less familiar to most people, as it has never been used. This method requires Congress to call a constitutional convention to propose amendments when two-thirds of the States apply for such a convention. (2) Many questions exist about the use of this amendment process. May the convention's scope be limited to certain subject matters? If so, who may limit it? How are state applications to be tallied--separately by subject matter or cumulatively, regardless of their subject matter? What is the relevance of the convention method of proposing amendments? Why should it ever be used? Some of these uncertainties about the convention have most likely contributed to states' reluctance to use the method. Yet, as of 1993, almost 400 convention applications had been submitted to Congress by the States since 1789. (3) This Note will attempt to explore the history of the Convention Clause in Article V and answer some of the questions about its use.
II. HISTORY
A. The Constitutional Convention
Much of the confusion about Article V comes from its ambiguous language. This ambiguity is the result of compromises at the Philadelphia Convention of 1787 between groups that wanted to exclude the national legislature from participating in the amendment process and groups that wanted to grant the national legislature the sole authority to amend. (4) The earliest proposal for an amendment provision, contained in the Virginia Plan, stated that "the assent of the National Legislature ought not to be required" to amend the Constitution. (5) Convention delegates privately circulated a proposed constitution authored by Alexander Hamilton (6) that gave the power to amend the Constitution to the national legislature and the power of ratification to legislatures or conventions in the States. (7) The Convention's first official action regarding the method for amending the Constitution was to adopt Resolution 17, which stated that the Constitution should contain some means for amendment, but did not specify the particular process to be used. (8)
The first reference to the use of a convention requested by the States is found in drafts of the Constitution kept by the Committee of Detail. (9) After several revisions, the Committee's final statement stated that "[t]his Constitution ought to be amended whenever such Amendment shall become necessary; and on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the States in the Union, the Legislature of the United States shall call a Convention for that Purpose.' (10) Hamilton and others argued that in addition to State legislatures, Congress should also have the power to propose amendments, and the Convention approved the addition of language giving Congress the power to propose amendments. (11) James Madison proposed new language that removed reference to a convention and gave the national legislature sole authority to propose amendments whenever it would "deem necessary, or on the application of two thirds of the Legislatures of the several States." (12) This language was adopted by the Convention, with no discussion about the elimination of the references to the use of conventions. (13)
On September 15, as the Convention was reviewing the revisions made by the Committee of Style, George Mason expressed opposition to the provisions limiting the power to propose amendments to Congress. According to the Convention records, Mason thought that "no amendments of the proper kind would ever be obtained by the people, if the Government should become oppressive, as he verily believed would be the case." (14) In response, Gouverneur Morris and Elbridge Gerry made a motion to amend the article to reintroduce language requiring that a convention be called when two-thirds of the States applied for an amendment. (15) Madison stated that he did not object to the convention method, but in expressing what proved to be prophetic concerns, he pointed out that "difficulties might arise as to the form" the convention would take. (16) Morris and Gerry's motion was unanimously adopted. (17) After Roger Sherman expressed concern that the Constitution could be amended to take power away from smaller states, (18) the clause stating "that no State, without its consent" could be deprived of "equal suffrage in the Senate" was added. (19) No further changes were made to the text of Article V, and the final version of the Constitution was adopted. (20) The final text of Article V reads:
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall
deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution,
or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two
thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing
Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to
all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when
ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several
States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one
or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the
Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be
made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and
eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses
in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State,
without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage
in the Senate. (21)
B. Attempts to Use the Convention Method
Although the convention method for proposing amendments has never been used, the threat of a convention has sometimes spurred Congress to action. During debates over the Constitution's ratification, the threat of a second constitutional convention was a key factor in Congress proposing the Bill of Rights. (22) There have been several occasions where the number of state applications for a convention was close to reaching the required two-thirds; at least once during the course of events leading to the adoption of the Seventeenth Amendment, the threat of a constitutional convention may have spurred Congress to act preemptively to propose the desired amendment itself. (23) The prospect of a convention may also have played a role in leading Congress to propose the Twenty-first, Twenty-second, and Twenty-fifth Amendments. (24)