Name:
Course:
Instructor:
Date:
Constitutional Amendment Paper
Considering that the U.S. Constitution was drafted in 1787 at a time when the entire population was around four million people (one percent of today’s total population), it is liberating that the framers engrained flexibility as integral to the Constitution. It is thus unsurprising that, over time, individuals have made thousands of proposals for revising the Constitution although only 27 amendments have been enacted so far. Unquestionably, the U.S. Constitution has proved as an extraordinary representation of law and liberty, attested by the fact that it has survived as the supreme law of land for over 200 years. Therefore, any proposals meant for amending the Constitution must hold substantial relevance and be crucial to modern society. Consequently, this paper will propose three amendments that should be made to the U.S. Constitution: (i) a constitutional guarantee to quality education, (ii) assurance of continued freedom of the internet, and (iii) a highly adjusted commerce clause.
The Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 along with subsidiary legislation such as the No Child Left Behind aim to ensure that all children have significant, equal, and fair opportunities to access quality education (Perry et al 35). However, words such as “ensure” have no legal basis, and educational inequalities have persisted. From this lens, it is fundamental to promote education through solid assurances in the Constitution. A recent publishing by Pearson Company surrounding a global ranking of education systems might serve as a vital incentive for showing the importance of this amendment. According to Pearson Publishing’s report, the education system in United States is placed the 17th out of the 40 countries in the survey. Surprisingly, all the countries that are listed ahead of the U.S. have made fundamental commitment to education through either a statutory or a constitutional guarantee of the right to education (Perry et al 97).
Education might be one of the surest equalizers for humankind and, arguably, just as much, the internet has played a significant role in facilitating democratic policies. It is from this insight that this essay positions urgency towards protecting this freedom. Prominent people in the society, including Hillary Clinton, have conveyed the importance of continued free access to the internet. All the same, it would be naïve to assume that governments and dictators around the world are not trying to find or develop means through which they can control access and use of the internet (Simon, Brent, and Nicholas 2). At this point, it is necessary to mention that this amendment is not only aimed to cover the here and now scenario, but to foresee future leaders that might attempt to use manipulative instruments in order to preserve power. Especially when it comes to matters of national security, governments can easily justify shutting down of the internet (Simon, Brent, and Nicholas 14). Therefore, constitutional amendments are needed in order to make such acts illegal for congress, military, and state legislature.
The third constitutional amendment proposed in this paper surrounds the commerce clause with a principal focus on the deteriorating economic condition of the United States. Currently, America is in its deepest historic debt, at $16.5 trillion, which totals to 115 percent of GDP. Kopel and Robert (56) provide that the given totals in debts represent over twelve Canadas. Economists fear that the U.S. will continue to run a deficit of 12 percent annually. This means that, by the year 2020, which is only 7 years to come, it is possible that the United States could be at 200 percent of GDP (Kopel & Robert 58). Given the above illustrations, it is elemental that the United States should find a means to overcome the looming economic fate. The first and most obvious step is to realize the implications of the commerce power as enumerated to the congress via Articles 1 and 8. It is common knowledge that the congress has used this power to expand its regulatory powers over states in the past. Arguably, this economically hazardous practice has only existed due to the indistinct nature of the commerce clause.
The U.S. Constitution recognizes that it must conform to the needs of the changing society, meaning that any given American can propose amendments. Clearly, the mere proposing might not be enough since there are numerous factors that individuals attempting to amend the Constitution must take into place. Some of these factors include recognized channels, processes, and people in varied positions that would facilitate popularizing the amendment. For instance, the first step in the campaigning of the three amendments would be to write down the proposed amendments (Krehbiel 24). The Constitution is a written law and individual words are ceased with profound understanding. From here, the next step would be to circulate these written amendments within the petitioner’s geography including city, state, county, and district. Here, the aim is to show proof of support. Hence, even though the collection of signatures is not mandatory, it might serve as vital to use such markings as evidence. Once this mission is accomplished, the last step is to send the proposals to the area senator or the region’s representative in Washington D.C.

Works Cited
Kopel, David B., and Robert G. Natelson. Commerce in the Commerce Clause: A Response to Jack Balkin. Michigan Law Review First Impressions 109 (2010): 55-61.
Krehbiel, Keith. Pivotal politics: A theory of US lawmaking. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010. Print.
Perry, Theresa, et al. Quality education as a constitutional right: Creating a grassroots movement to transform public schools. New York: Beacon Press, 2010. Print.
Simon, Christopher A., Brent Steel, and Nicholas P. Lovrich. State and local government: Sustainability in the 21st century. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Print.