Laurence Tribe - The Equal Rights Amendment at Long Last

[muriel_volestrangler]

64. So you support a mechanism to pass amendments that even a majority never support at a given time?

Scenario: Congress suggests an amendment to raise the voting age to 30.

1 quarter of states ratify it, and 3/4 say "no, that's pants".

The 1/4 thinks better, and says "on second thoughts, this is a silly amendment. Let's not go there".

But a different quarter of the states decides it's a good idea after all, and holds new votes to ratify.

Repeat that - those who had been in favour change their vote, and a different quarter decide it's a good idea after all.

By now, three quarters of states have, at some time, been in favour, though at any one moment, a quarter or less have been in favour.

But under Tribe's arrangement, that counts as three quarters ratifying it, and so an immensely unpopular amendment is passed.

What a shitshow that would be. Why claim that must be the way to amend the constitution? It's just a way of being undemocratic.