John, remember when Donald Trump called for the “termination” of our U.S. Constitution?
You might have brushed it off as yet another of Trump’s absurd and completely impossible claims.
But whether Trump knows it or not, some of his far-right compatriots are pushing a scheme that could do just that – including Speaker of the House Mike Johnson – and they are frighteningly close to getting their way!
Let me tell you a little about the Article V Convention – a secretive plot backed up with millions in right-wing dark money that could radically reshape the Constitution – gutting bedrock laws like free speech, freedom of religion, the right to privacy, and more.
As I write you, wealthy special interest groups like the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) are spending big money to lobby state lawmakers, demanding they vote to ratify the convening of an Article V Convention to reshape the U.S. Constitution.
And here’s the chilling fact far too many Americans are unaware of: this conspiracy against our Constitution is just six states away from succeeding.
I know what you might be thinking. If something this serious were on the table, I’d be hearing about it all the time, right? The media would be investigating and exposing the donors behind it. Our lawmakers would be educating the public on the threat of the Article V Convention. There’s no way something like this could be brewing under the cover of darkness.
This operation outside of the public eye is all intentional, John. The wealthy mega donors backing the Article V Convention are counting on it staying under wraps, so they can rip our Constitution to shreds before we know what’s happening.
The reality is that the Article V Convention isn’t just some fringe idea with a slim chance of materializing into anything more. Many constitutional experts believe the Article V Convention is the biggest present threat to our democracy.
And knowing they have the support of our new Speaker of the House – who’s second in line for the presidency – the far-right billionaires behind this sinister effort have already painted a target on the exact states they’ll need to throw our constitutional order into utter chaos.
So, John, Trump’s calls to tear up our Constitution in order to enact his extreme agenda may not be going unheard after all.
But Common Cause won’t let special interests steal away our rights behind closed doors. Our state legislative teams have been blocking the forces behind the Article V Convention every step of the way. And we’re spreading the word far and wide to make sure every American knows about this attack on our Constitution.
In the past year, we rolled back Oregon’s call for an Article V Convention. And before that, we rescinded previous calls for a Convention in New Jersey, Illinois, Colorado, New Hampshire, Delaware, New Mexico, Maryland, and Nevada. That is in addition to stopping nearly 150 new calls for a convention each year in states across the country.
Despite these exciting wins, the truth is that continuing this fight is going to be an uphill battle John. We’re up against billions of dollars from mega donors and lobbyists. And to be honest, we have nowhere near the same resources backing us in this fight.
The stakes are too high for us to back down. If we allow extremists to rewrite our Constitution, we could see a radical rollback in civil rights, the gutting of the First Amendment, the shredding of environmental regulations, and much more.
Here’s a bit of silver lining: right now, a generous group of donors is matching every gift, dollar-for-dollar, up to $100,000 – so you can have twice the impact to shut down Article V and protect our democracy. But this match expires at the end of the month.
We desperately need more resources to go up against the billionaires calling for an Article V Convention. Can I count on you to rush a contribution of $3 and protect our Constitution? Your gift will be matched!
Let me be clear: I’m confident that with Common Cause members like you by our side, we can stop the Article V Convention and keep our Constitution intact. But I need to know I can count on your support to keep this vital work going.
In common cause,
Viki Harrison, Director of Constitutional Convention & Protect Dissent Programs,
and the team at Common Cause
