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There is no constitutional provision that would ever allow abolishing the Senate. The Constitution of the USA prohibits any amendment that could change the disp

There is no constitutional provision that would ever allow abolishing the Senate. The Constitution of the USA prohibits any amendment that could change the disproportionality of the Senate.

schoen 11y ago
Technically it says that "no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate" so the Senate could presumably be abolished by constitutional amendment if all states agreed. (I wonder about replacing the Senate with another legislative house and giving the existing Senate largely ceremonial responsibilities without formally abolishing it -- would that count as depriving the states of equal suffrage in the Senate?)
- pc86 11y ago
  Presumably any amendment that would abolish or sufficiently alter the Senate would simply remove that article as well. The phrase "the Constitution prohibits this amendment" doesn't make any sense because an amendment to the Constitution cannot by definition be unconstitutional.
  - JoeAltmaier 11y ago
    Perhaps that was meant to say, it would make the Constitution internally contradict itself?
  - schoen 11y ago
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entrenched_clause https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entrenched_clause
nickff 11y ago
An amendment can alter the text of any portion(s) of the constitution. While I agree that abolishing the Senate would be a radical change, I do not know of any restrictions which would bar it.[1] Even if this were not possible, a constitutional convention could be held to make the change. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_Sta...
dragonwriter 11y ago
It prohibits an amendment to eliminate the equal representation of States in the Senate, but it does not prohibit either of: 1. An amendment eliminating all actual powers of the Senate, either with our workout creating some new body to which those powers are transferred, or 2. An amendment eliminating the restriction on amendments eliminating the equal representation of States in the Senate.

There is no constitutional provision that would ever allow abolishing the Senate. The Constitution of the USA prohibits any amendment that could change the disproportionality of the Senate.

schoen 11y ago

Technically it says that "no state, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate" so the Senate could presumably be abolished by constitutional amendment if all states agreed. (I wonder about replacing the Senate with another legislative house and giving the existing Senate largely ceremonial responsibilities without formally abolishing it -- would that count as depriving the states of equal suffrage in the Senate?)

pc86 11y ago
Presumably any amendment that would abolish or sufficiently alter the Senate would simply remove that article as well. The phrase "the Constitution prohibits this amendment" doesn't make any sense because an amendment to the Constitution cannot by definition be unconstitutional.
- JoeAltmaier 11y ago
  Perhaps that was meant to say, it would make the Constitution internally contradict itself?
- schoen 11y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entrenched_clause https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entrenched_clause

nickff 11y ago

An amendment can alter the text of any portion(s) of the constitution. While I agree that abolishing the Senate would be a radical change, I do not know of any restrictions which would bar it.[1] Even if this were not possible, a constitutional convention could be held to make the change. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_States_Constitution https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_Five_of_the_United_Sta...

dragonwriter 11y ago

It prohibits an amendment to eliminate the equal representation of States in the Senate, but it does not prohibit either of: 1. An amendment eliminating all actual powers of the Senate, either with our workout creating some new body to which those powers are transferred, or 2. An amendment eliminating the restriction on amendments eliminating the equal representation of States in the Senate.