The problem with our constitutional amendment process is that it is controlled by a federal government that has no desire to limit its own power. So the constitution isn’t about to be improved any time soon, but if it were, here are the amendments I would wish for.
#1: Ban the stationing of American troops on foreign soil.
That has worked since WWII to curb Japanese aggression. Maybe it could work to curb ours.
#2 Ban foreign aid
Why must our taxpayers support corrupt foreign governments who use the money to oppress their own people? And we wonder why they hate us.
#3 Cap the growth rate of annual federal expenditures to not exceed population growth rate plus one percent.
It works for Colorado so why not at the national level? But unlike Colorado, we need not allow for inflation, because the Federal Reserve controls inflation; they will keep the inflation rate below 1% because it will now be in the government’s best interest to do so.
#4 Automatic banishment from office for all members of congress if the cumulative budget cap is exceeded in any two consecutive years. Replacement senators and congresspersons are to be appointed by state legislatures as necessary for completion of term.
There must be a mechanism to enforce budget restraint at the federal level, because the federal government can print money. I thought of summary execution like they have done in Argentina, but I rejected that as too harsh.
#5 Salary bonus to be paid to each member of congress using the formula: equal share of one percent of the amount by which a budget surplus is used to pay down the national debt.
Monetary rewards to corporate executives have long been successful for the purpose of getting the stock price up. This method should also work for getting the deficit down. One bug not resolved is how to prevent the gamers from creating a debt one year so they can pay it off the next year to win the bonus.
#6 Empower state legislatures to confirm and impeach the federal judges which preside over those states.
The Senate currently confirms and impeaches federal judges but has failed to curb judicial activism. Give the job to the people the judges are pushing around.
#7 Explicitly enshrine jury nullification into our Constitution
Jury nullification is the process by which a jury is allowed to render judgment on the fairness of the law itself, and not just the facts of the case. By English Common Law, juries already have this power; but our system keeps juries ignorant of this fact.
Conclusion
A constitution is only effective to restrain government so long as it represents the beliefs already dominant in society. If the ideals of society evolve away from the ideals assumed in the document, then the document is merely a piece of paper to be ignored.
Tragically, our society has already made the transition from a Republic to a social democracy. As such, our Constitution has become a relic from a previous age, and devoid of real meaning. Without the controlling influence of a constitution, the general trend of our country is towards the continued accumulation of arbitrary governmental authority and increased fiscal irresponsibility. The ultimate result will be economic and political chaos.
History shows that from this chaos usually emerges a "savior" who disposes with the last remnants of liberty, and imposes autocratic rule. Caesar, Napoleon, and Hitler are familiar examples. Such is the life cycle of liberty.
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Several ideas in this article were borrowed from the article by Steven LaTulippe titled “A Constitutional Daydream”, which was posted on www.lewrockwell.com on 8/29/04.