''A More Perfect Constitution'' is a book published by American

political scientist Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and l ...

at the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

, Larry J. Sabato, in which he proposes a constitutional convention to substantially overhaul the

United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven articles, it delineates the natio ...

. He points out that after the

Bill of Rights A bill of rights, sometimes called a declaration of rights or a charter of rights, is a list of the most important rights to the citizens of a country. The purpose is to protect those rights against infringement from public officials and pri ...

, there have only been seventeen

constitutional amendments A constitutional amendment is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly altering the text. Conversely, ...

over the past 220 years. He argues that a constitutional convention is overdue and is something that the Founding Fathers would have wanted. He offers 23 proposals for revising the Constitution.

Sabato's proposals

The twenty-three proposals run the gamut from changing the length of the

U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

's term in office and the number and terms of

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions ...

justices to altering the structure of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

, modifying the Electoral College, and introducing universal national service. Each of his proposals could be implemented with concurrence of 2/3 of each house of Congress and 3/4 of the states, except for the proposal to give some states more Senators than others. That proposal would require concurrence from every state.

Congress

* Expand the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...

to 136 members to have it be more representative. His plan would give the ten most populous states two additional senators each, and give the next fifteen most populous states one additional senator, and would give the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, N ...

one senator. * Appoint all former presidents and vice presidents to the new office of "National Senator" to serve national interests instead of state interests and bring presidential experience to the Senate. * Mandate non-partisan

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral distri ...

for House elections to enhance electoral competition and lessen the influence of

gerrymandering In representative democracies, gerrymandering (, originally ) is the political manipulation of electoral district boundaries with the intent to create undue advantage for a party, group, or socioeconomic class within the constituency. The m ...

. * Lengthen the terms of representatives from two years to three years, and set Senate terms to coincide with all presidential elections, so the entire House and Senate would be elected at the same time as the President.While electing the president and Senate simultaneously would not work with the current four-year presidential terms, Sabato proposes a six-year presidential term as described below. * Expand the size of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ca ...

to approximately 1,000 members from the current total of 435, so House members can be closer to their constituents, and to level the playing field in House elections. * Establish

term limit A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...

s in the House and Senate to restore the Founders' principle of frequent

rotation in office In the United States, term limits, also referred to as ''rotation in office'', restrict the number of terms of office an officeholder may serve. At the federal level, the 22nd Amendment to the United States Constitution limits the president of ...

. * Add a

Balanced Budget Amendment A balanced budget amendment is a constitutional rule requiring that a state cannot spend more than its income. It requires a balance between the projected receipts and expenditures of the government. Balanced-budget provisions have been added t ...

to encourage fiscal fairness to future generations. * Create a

Continuity of Government Continuity of government (COG) is the principle of establishing defined procedures that allow a government to continue its essential operations in case of a catastrophic event such as nuclear war. COG was developed by the British government befo ...

procedure to provide for the replacement of senators and representatives in the event of extensive deaths or incapacitation as may happen as a result of a major disaster such as a large scale nuclear attack.

Presidency

* Establish a new six-year, one-time presidential term with the option for the President to seek two additional years if approved by a

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption o ...

of the American people. * Limit some presidential war-making powers and expand Congress' oversight of war-making. * Give the president a

line-item veto The line-item veto, also called the partial veto, is a special form of veto power that authorizes a chief executive to reject particular provisions of a bill enacted by a legislature without vetoing the entire bill. Many countries have differen ...

. * Allow people not born in the United States to run for president or vice president after having been a citizen for 20 years.

Supreme Court

* Eliminate

lifetime tenure A life tenure or service during good behaviour is a term of office that lasts for the office holder's lifetime, unless the office holder is removed from office for cause under misbehaving in office, extraordinary circumstances or decides personal ...

for federal judges in favor of non-renewable 15-year terms for all federal judges. * Grant Congress the power to set a mandatory retirement age 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 Cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living. Changes in the cost of living over time can be operationalized in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare the cost of maintaining a ce ...

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. * Keep the Electoral College, as the previously suggested House and Senate reforms would 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. Mandate partial public financing for House and Senate campaigns to lessen the impact of lobbyists and fundraisers. * Adopt an automatic registration system for all qualified American citizens to guarantee that 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.

Notes

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:More Perfect Constitution, A 2007 non-fiction books Books about politics of the United States United States constitutional commentary