Is it time to amend the Constitution for Trump and Musk?

December 23, 2024

Is it time to amend the Constitution for Trump and Musk?

Some Trump supporters love him so much that they would have him as our president for life. Some love Elon Musk so much that they would have him as our president after Trump. Well, our current constitution doesn't allow either scenario. The U.S. Constitution limits presidential terms to two. The Constitution also limits the presidency to natural-born U.S. citizens.

It would not be surprising if Trump and Musk seek to push amendments to the Constitution in the next four years. If things go well, they may have leverage for amendments. If things go poorly, they would have a different leverage blaming the Constitution as the problem. Either way, the argument may be that amending the Constitution is required to make America great again.

Test the Waters with Birther Rights

To test the waters and master the constitutional amendment process, Trump and Musk may begin pushing an easier amendment to end the so-called birther rights. That was a liberal or progressive amendment to safeguard citizenship for former slaves. It may be an easy target for amendment. The pitch may be that unless birther rights are eliminated, the babies of "criminals" illegal aliens (code for nonwhites) will outnumber the babies of law-abiding U.S. citizens (read a nonwhite voting majority).

Trump and Musk may push for other amendments including eliminating the two-term limitation, the natural-born citizen requirement to be president, and the cumbersome way of amending the Constitution. While they're at it, they may move for an almost full revision to the Constitution to ensure that America can be great again.

It would be okay for Trump and Musk to sell their agenda. Voters can then decide whether they want to buy or not. Trump and Musk are genius salesmen. History has shown that anything is possible in politics. If the standard process for amending the Constitution doesn't work, Trump and Musk can also work on other methods to end our current Constitutional system, which they may find incredibly ineffective and inconvenient.

The future has not been created yet. It's impossible to know whether Trump and Musk will succeed in amending or eliminating the current Constitution. Reality is live and unscripted. No one knows what's going to happen and that's what makes life so interesting and compelling.

Below for your reading pleasure, there is more information about Constitutional birther rights, the two-term presidential limit, and the natural-born citizenship requirement.

What are the so-called birther rights in the U.S. Constitution?

The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution safeguards the so-called "birther rights," particularly through its Citizenship Clause in Section 1. This clause establishes the principle of birthright citizenship, which grants automatic citizenship to anyone born on U.S. soil, regardless of the citizenship status of their parents (with some exceptions, such as children of foreign diplomats).

The 14th Amendment, ratified in 1868, was primarily designed to provide citizenship to formerly enslaved people after the Civil War, but it also became the foundation for birthright citizenship in the United States.

Can naturalized U.S. citizens like Elon Musk be president?

No, naturalized U.S. citizens are not eligible to be elected to the presidency. Article II, Section 1 of the U.S. Constitution establishes the eligibility requirements for the office of President, stating:

"No person except a natural born citizen, or a citizen of the United States, at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President."

This clause restricts eligibility to citizens by birth, either born on U.S. soil (jus soli) or born to U.S. citizen parents (jus sanguinis), depending on specific circumstances. Immigrants who acquire U.S. citizenship through the naturalization process, no matter how long they have been citizens or how dedicated they are to public service, are not considered "natural-born citizens" under this clause. Elon Musk was born and raised in Petroria, South Africa. Musk moved to Canada at the age of 17 where he became a Canadian citizen because his mother is Canadian. Elon's father was South African.

Can Elon Musk be at least Vice President?

No. The same natural-born requirement applies to the Vice President because the vice president must be eligible to assume the presidency if the President is not available or capable.

This restriction has been a topic of debate already. Some have advocated for constitutional amendments to allow naturalized citizens to become eligible for the presidency. It has not happened yet, but Elon Musk may make it happen.

Can Trump serve for a second term after his second term?

Trump may want to argue that the two-term limit only applies to consecutive terms. The Supreme Court may agree with him. The text of the 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified on February 27, 1951, reads:

"Section 1: No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice, and no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of President more than once. …"

The purpose of the 22nd Amendment wa to prevent excessive concentration of power. By limiting presidents to two elected terms, the amendment aims to prevent any one individual from holding the presidency for too long, thereby avoiding potential authoritarianism. The amendment formalized the informal tradition set by George Washington, who voluntarily stepped down after two terms, establishing a precedent followed by subsequent presidents until Franklin D. Roosevelt.

George Washington, the first U.S. president, declined to seek a third term, believing that a peaceful and frequent transition of power was vital to a functioning democracy. This tradition was respected for over 150 years.

The Great Depression and Franking D. Roosevelt

In 1940, amid the crises of the Great Depression and World War II, Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR), a Democrat, broke the precedent by seeking and winning a third term. History shows that moments of crisis can more easily lead to concentration of power.

Not even a third term was enough. In 1944, Trump ran again and was elected to a fourth term. Roosevelt passed away shortly after beginning his fourth term. Roosevelt's power grab led to Constitutional and political concerns about the concentration of power in the executive branch. In 1947, Congress passed a resolution proposing the 22nd Amendment. The amendment was ratified in 1951, to ensure that no future president could serve more than two terms.

What is the current process for amending the United States Constitution?

The process for amending the Constitution is outlined in Article V. It is designed to be a rigorous and collaborative process, reflecting the concern of altering the supreme law of the land.

Steps in the Constitutional Amendment Process:

1. Proposal Stage

An amendment can be proposed by:

Congress: A two-thirds vote in the House of Representatives and the Senate is required.

National Convention: Called by two-thirds (34 out of 50) of the state legislatures. This method has never been used.

2. Ratification Stage

Once proposed, an amendment must be ratified by the states. There are two ways to achieve this:

State Legislatures: Three-fourths (38 out of 50) of state legislatures must approve the amendment.

State Ratifying Conventions: Three-fourths of the states must convene conventions to approve the amendment. This method has only been used once - for the 21st Amendment, which repealed Prohibition.

3. Certification

Once the required number of states ratify the amendment, it becomes part of the Constitution. The Archivist of the United States oversees the process of certifying the amendment.

In sum, the current Constitution prohibits Trump from seeking a third term in office, forbids Musk, a South African immigrant and naturalized U.S. citizen, from running for president, and safeguards citizenship of babies born on the U.S. regardless of the immigration status of their parents (with the exception of diplomats). Interestingly, none of these three provisions were part of the original text of the Constitution. All were added via the Constitutional amendment process. Just as they were amended it, they can be amended out. If anyone can pull the trick, that would be the dynamic duo running our new country, the United States of Trump and Musk.

Now you know it.

Creatix is a commercial intelligence matrix. A matrix is a place or platform where things are created. To create is to transform. Creatix transforms general information into business intelligence. For example, Creatix can help you identify what business rules you may want to amend (or not) in your business and in the business of life.

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