Call it the Crazy Amendment

I know you've been on the edge of your chair waiting to see how low the Tea Party thought police could possibly sink. But I think now the suspense has finally ended.

I call it the Crazy Amendment, and the teabaggers want to ram it through like the rest of their goofy-ass ideas. This proposal is a planned amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would let the legislatures of two-thirds of the states declare federal laws unconstitutional and overturn them. It has already been introduced in Congress by right-wing lawmakers.

This is loopy on so many levels. For starts, it defies the principles of federalism. It also guts separation of powers by giving lawmakers powers reserved for the other branches of government. It gives corrupt state political machines too much sway over national policy. And it lets blocs of small states run roughshod over the public's will: Remember, it would let two-thirds of the state legislatures repeal federal laws - not two-thirds of the public.

If the teagaggers are so up in arms about bossy federal laws, why don't they take it to the people instead of to the crooked state machines? There's a reason why our system splits federal and state powers, folks. And there's also a reason why our system has 3 branches of government.

This would be laughable if it wasn't such an utter mockery of our constitutional republic.

Meanwhile, they let the amendment against corporate personhood languish.

(Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/20/us/politics/20states.html)