Grievance 26 - Disempowerment

The U. S. Constitution gave no power to the American people at-large to
initiate constitutional changes directly. Such power was reserved to
federal and state politicians under Article V;

"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 States,
shall call a convention for
proposing Amendments."

Nor could the people at-large initiate and decide legislation, or vote
by referendum on issues submitted to them by Congress.

The people at-large were also disempowered by failure of the
Constitution to specifically limit the President's power to enact
defacto law by Executive Orders, Directives, and Sanctions, that usurped
the constitutional power of Congress as set forth in Article 1, Section 1;

"All legislative powers herein granted
shall be vested in a Congress of the
United States which shall consist of
a Senate and House of Representatives."

The people at-large had no constitutional power to remove the President
from office prior to expiration of a constitutionally mandated four-year
term. Such authority was reserved to politicians in Congress "on
impeachment for, and conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high
Crimes and misdemeanors", but not for lack of confidence, trust, or
other considerations.

Powerful government positions were relatively insulated from the people
at-large by the length of elective terms; President & Vice President -
four years, Senator - six years, Representative - two years, with office
holders removable at mid-term only by a costly and cumbersome process of
"recall" elections. By contrast, the U.S. Supreme Court decided
critical constitutional issue in less time, and Criminal Court juries
often spent less time in deciding questions of life and death.

The Constitution further disempowered the people at-large under Article
II, whereby state-appointed "presidential electors" could over-ride the
popular vote and install somebody else in the highest office in the
land.

The "representative form" of government favored an oligarchical element
of power controllers and manipulators and served to disempower the
people at-large from the lawmaking and governing process of government.

The percentage of voting-age Americans who cast ballots for President
fell from 69.3 percent in 1984 to 54.2 percent in 1998 when the
vote-winning candidate assumed office with about 25 percent of the
eligible vote.

In 1992, fifty-six politicians quit Congress, prompting Representative
Vin Weber, of Minnesota, to observe;

"We are in a decaying spiral of
public confidence. The public
does not trust the institutions,
they do not trust the political
parties."

All Americans could be totally disempowered by elimination of the
Constitution altogether. Such a thing was possible through a process
involving a mere handful of politicians, including the President and
some Senators, under Article VI;

"...all Treaties made, or which shall
be made, under the Authority of the
United States shall be the Supreme
Law of the land..."

And under Article II Section 2;

(The President) "shall have power, by
and with the Advice and Consent of
the Senate, to make Treaties provided
two-thirds of the Senators present
concur..."

The American people at-large had no direct power to approve or reject
treaties that literally could eliminate what they had been led to
believe was a great democratic document protecting their "rights".

With an Authentic Constitution in harmony with the natural Cosmic Laws
of the universe, and producing High Moral Values and Democratic Ideals,
all individuals are empowered equally to vote on the Principles,
Policies and Programs of their government.

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