The Conference of the States: Failure or Prelude to Constitu- tional Reform?

Event Details

John Kincaid, the editor of Publius: the Journal of Federalism, discusses the efforts to reform the federal system in America, most notably with the Conference of the States. Kincaid stresses that the feeling of distrust of the federal government has precipitated several efforts to scale it back. Kincaid explains that the Conference of the States, which sought to amend the Constitution, drew heavy criticism as many saw it as a planned coup. He identifies the failures of the Conference of States to be the historical parallel to the first Constitutional Convention, the lack of interest from the large states, and the inability of the governors in attendance to marshal the support of their state legislators.