Iowa Birchers Convince State GOP to Oppose Con-Con
by Tammy Kobza, Field Coordinator for Iowa, Eastern Nebraska, Eastern South Dakota, and Southern North Dakota
“We believe the United States Constitution, when properly obeyed and enforced, is an effective and timeless guiding instrument for the governing of our nation. Therefore, in view of the dire warnings from James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, four US Supreme Court Justices, and other eminent Jurists and scholars, we are opposed to the proposals of organizations such as ‘Convention of States’ to ask Congress to call an Article V Convention.”
The above anti-Con-Con plank, added to the 2022 Iowa Republican Party platform, was years in the making and took education, commitment to the task at hand, knowledge of how the political system works, and courage to stand against forces that want to destroy our Constitution.
For years, Iowans defending the Constitution against the Convention of States (COS) lobby worked to keep the platform’s language neutral, a wise decision. But through educating citizens, using COS’s own words to expose the dangers of a convention, and ensuring that constitutionalists became delegates, we won!
We knew and stuck to the convention rules, and we worked hard the morning of the convention to get the necessary signatures so the plank could be voted on. COS advocates, however, disregarded the rules by putting their flyers on the chairs (no materials were allowed on chairs). Their disdain of the rules did not go unnoticed by pro-Constitution delegates. One delegate had the courage to comment that if COS disregarded such a simple rule, why should anyone think that they or others attending an Article V convention would “obey the rules”?
We’re continuing our efforts: Our next step is to rescind all prior applications, and we’re also educating state legislators about nullification. This win wouldn’t have been possible without Iowans in the battle, and we gladly welcome more warriors!