We should have a second Constitutional Convention in the summer of 2076 in Philadelphia to propose various amendments to our Constitution so it will last another 300 years.

Among these proposed amendments should be the following:

1. Add the right to vote for all U.S. citizens, no exceptions, to our unalienable rights along with Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness with the “All U.S. Citizens Should Vote.” amendment.

2. Replace the Electoral College to elect the president with direct popular vote using Ranked Choice Voting.

3. Require only 2/3 of state legislatures to ratify new amendments to the Constitution instead of the current 3/4 in the “2/3 is Enough” amendment.

4. Require the federal government to have a balanced budget(or a surplus), as is done in most state budgets, except in time of war or national emergency.

5. Ban abortions in all 52 states, except in case of rape, incest or to save the life of the mother.

Note: Let the people decide. Proposed amendments at this second Constitutional Convention should include a wide variety of changes that may be important to Republicans, Democrats or Independents. None of these proposed amendments will become law until 2/3 of the state ratifying conventions pass each individual amendment, as was required in the first Constitutional Convention in 1787.

Convening a second Constitutional Convention to propose amendments to our Constitution to improve our democracy is a very risky enterprise. We have only done this once in the 300 years of our democracy. In the first Constitutional Convention in 1787 the convention delegates decided not to just amendment the Constitution but to replace the then current Constitution (The Articles of Confederation) with a whole new Constitution. It’s possible for the same thing to happen at the Second Constitutional Convention.

I believe that this risk is worth taking and we will not scrap our Constitution and replace it with an entirely new Constitution, as was done in 1787, for the following three reasons:

1. If we hold this Constitutional Convention in the summer of 2076 in Philadelphia the spirit of compromise and desire to do what’s best for the common good of all Americans, as happened at the first Constitutional Convention in 1787, will overcome the convention delegates’ natural partisan and selfish tendencies.

2. By choosing to have the states ratify the proposed amendments at state ratifying conventions(as was done in 1787), instead of by the state legislatures, this will greatly reduce the normal partisan political motives of state politicians’ decisions to ratify or not ratify the proposed amendments.

3. I have faith in the power of the people in a democracy, despite democracy’s many flaws, to make American democracy the best democracy in the whole world. We did it in 1787. We can do it again in 2076.