Amendments by Acclamation: Democrats Move to Simply Declare the Equal Rights Amendment as Ratified

“…Below is my column in the Hill on the Democratic campaign to simply declare the Equal Rights Amendment ratified as the 28th Amendment to the Constitution. The question is whether raw politics is enough to shock the unratified and undead into life.

Here is the column:

Madison, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin: The names of great constitutional figures are etched in the minds of every schoolchild. But soon, if Democrats in Congress have their way, they will add one more: David Ferriero.

Who is David Ferriero, you ask? He is 10th Archivist of the United States. He also may be the man who unilaterally declares the long-dead Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) not just alive but now part of our Constitution as the 28th Amendment.

Democratic leaders like Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.), chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, want Ferriero to simply publish the ERA in the Federal Register as a ratified amendment. It isn’t, of course. However, these Democrats insist that a unilateral decision from Ferriero declaring it ratified would mean it is ratified … at least until some courts say otherwise. And they are calling on President Biden to support this dubious move toward amendments by archival acclamation.

Such muscle plays have become common in the last two years. Democratic members and advocacy groups have pushed to pack the Supreme Court with an instant liberal majority. They have sought to negate state election laws and impose their own federal election standards on states.

These efforts have one thing in common: They avoid having the issues addressed by the voters directly or by the states.

This one makes the other efforts look restrained by comparison, however. Rather than submit a new ERA to the states, Democratic leaders want Ferriero to just declare it a done deal…”