Unfortunately, this year, the General Assembly voted to open the U.S. Constitution to radical revisions that could obliterate the God-given freedoms that it guarantees. Specifically, it passed House Joint Resolution 5 (HJR 5), which applies to Congress to for a convention to propose a constitutional amendment “to set a limit on the number of terms to which a person may be elected as a member of the [U.S. House and Senate].” The House passed HJR 5 by a 66-27 vote in 2023, and the Senate voted 18-11 in favor this year.
Any Con-Con could accomplish the same goals that many of its advocates claim to be fighting against. As evidence, 2016 and 2023 Convention of States (COS) controlled simulations resulted in amendments massively increasing the federal government and expanding its spending powers! Furthermore, term limits would do nothing to limit the federal government or improve our representation. For example, they would throw out the best congressmen along with the worst.
The late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia understood the danger of a constitutional convention, stating in 2015 that “this is not a good century to write a constitution.”
Please contact your state legislators and inform them about the many dangers of an Article V Con-Con. Furthermore, use our action packets and other resources (including our new Article V Convention Brief) to do so, as well as our testimonials by state legislators pointing out the dangers of a Con-Con and outright deception from pro-Con-Con groups such as COS.
Nullification
We had been monitoring multiple strong nullification bills this year. These include House Bill 2795 (HB 2795) and Senate Bill 2775 (SB 2775), titled the “Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act.” If enacted, these bills would have created formal processes for reviewing the constitutionality of federal actions and rejecting those found unconstitutional — and they would be one of the strongest and most comprehensive nullification laws in the country. Unfortunately, the General Assembly did not take action on either bill. Worse, the Tennessee Attorney General’s office issued an opinion incorrectly claiming that the “Restoring State Sovereignty Through Nullification Act” is “constitutionally infirm.”
Meanwhile, House Bill 1609 (HB 1609) and Senate Bill 2750 (SB 2750) were introduced. If enacted, they would have prevented combat deployments of the Tennessee National Guard by the federal government in the absence of a congressional declaration of war or another constitutional reason in accordance with Article I, Section 8, Clauses 11 and 15, of the U.S. Constitution. In other words, these bills would have been a strong and bold step toward nullifying unconstitutional wars and severely hampering the federal government’s ability to further entangle the U.S. in any undeclared wars overseas. Unfortunately, the General Assembly did not take action on HB 1609 or SB 2750.
Also introduced was House Joint Resolution 689 (HJR 689), a non-binding resolution urging Congress to reclaim is constitutional power to declare war. Although the House voted 73-23 in favor of HJR 689, the resolution died in the Senate.
Senate Bill 2223 (SB 2223), titled the “Second Amendment Financial Privacy Act,” had also been introduced. This bill bans state or local governments from keeping firearm registries, and prevents financial entities from tracking firearm purchases via credit-card tracking codes. SF 105 comes after the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), an international organization linked to the United Nations, approved creating such a code. Thankfully, SB 2223 passed the Senate by a 25-5 vote, and the House by a 75-7 vote, and was signed into law.
Please contact and meet with your state legislators, urging them to enact legislation that enforces the U.S. Constitution and nullifies unconstitutional federal actions. Furthermore, show your legislators model nullification bills and urge them to enact such legislation.
United Nations
The General Assembly considered several bills and resolutions related to the United Nations. One of these was Senate Bill 2743 (SB 2743), which strengthens an existing law banning state and local involvement in globalist United Nations initiatives, including its Agenda 21/2030 programs. SB 2743 passed by a 24-5 vote in the Senate, and a 73-24 vote in the House, and Governor Lee signed it into law.
Meanwhile, House Joint Resolution 849 (HJR 849) is a non-binding resolution urging “Congress and the President to withdraw the United States from the United Nations.” However, it also praises the United States’ “excellent relationship with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO),” and urges Congress and the president to “strengthen America’s ties with NATO” — despite NATO being a subsidiary of the UN and undermining U.S. sovereignty and constitutional adherence. The House voted 66-25 in favor of HJR 849, while the Senate approved it via voice vote, and Governor Lee signed it into law.
Also, House Joint Resolution 820 (HJR 820), House Joint Resolution 1359 (HJR 1359), and Senate Joint Resolution 1135 (SJR 1135) were introduced. HJR 820 urges Congress to defund the World Health Organization (WHO) and oppose WHO usurpations of U.S. sovereignty; HJR 1359 declares “that neither the World Health Organization, United Nations, nor the World Economic Forum shall have any jurisdiction or power within the State of Tennessee”; and SJR 1135 voices opposition to the WHO’s proposed global pandemic treaty. The House passed HJR 820 by a 71-23 vote, and the Senate passed SJR 1135 by a 26-4 vote, but the resolutions didn’t advance further.
Please contact your state legislators, and urge them to take strong action to defend Tennessee and U.S. sovereignty — and our God-given freedoms — from international organizations such as the UN and WHO.
Sound Money
We had been monitoring House Bill 2804 (HB 2804) and Senate Bill 2737 (SB 2737), which would have officially recognized gold and silver as legal tender, a major step toward returning to constitutional adherence and treating gold and silver as currency. Unfortunately, the General Assembly did not take action on these bills.
Meanwhile, Senate Bill 1764 (SB 1764), Senate Bill 2219 (SB 2219), and House Bill 1901 (HB 1901) would have amended the state’s definition of money to exclude a potential central bank digital currency (CBDC) — regardless of whether it is “issued by the federal reserve or another federal agency, a foreign government, a foreign central bank, or a foreign reserve system.” This would effectively ban them within Tennessee. Thankfully, the Senate passed SB 2219 by a 31-0 vote and the House by a 77-14 vote, and Governor Bill Lee signed it into law.
Please continue informing your legislators about the importance of constitutional money, and urge them to take bold action to fully enforce the U.S. Constitution’s monetary provisions.
Government Schools
We had also been monitoring House Bill 1249 (HB 1249) and Senate Bill 1507 (SB 1507), which would have created a “federal education funding task force” to review all federal education funding in Tennessee and examine the feasibility of rejecting federal funding. Unfortunately, the state Senate issued a report recommending against rejecting federal funding, and the General Assembly did not take action on HB 1249 or SB 1507. However, legislators did unanimously pass Senate Bill 2106 (SB 2106), which requires the state Department of Education to disclose any federal education-related directives.
House Bill 1605 (HB 1605) would have banned LGBT “pride” flags from being displayed in government schools. Although the House passed the bill by a 70-24 vote, it failed in the Senate by a 13-6 vote, not surpassing the minimum vote threshold to pass.
Also, the General Assembly rejected an effort by Governor Bill Lee to enact universal school vouchers. Although vouchers (also called “Education Savings Accounts”) sound like a good idea, they severely threaten individual freedom and parental rights by shackling parents and religious schools to government funding — and the various strings attached. Although Gov. Lee’s efforts failed this year, the General Assembly could consider a similar proposal next year.
Contact your legislators and urge them to get government completely out of education — as had been the case in the United States before the late 1800s. Also, we encourage all parents to get their children out of the government school system and instead pursue sound alternatives such as homeschooling and patriotic private schools.
Other Legislation
Among other legislation, we had been monitoring House Bill 1894 (HB 1894), which classifies food as “drugs” if they contain vaccine material — an increasingly needed protection against vaccine-laced foods. It passed the House by a 73-22 vote, and the Senate by a 24-6 vote, and Governor Lee signed it into law.
The General Assembly also enacted Senate Bill 2691 (SB 2691), which bans geoengineering — increasingly promoted as a way to help prevent supposed “climate change” — in Tennessee.
Two bills strengthening religious-liberty protections became law. One, House Bill 878 (HB 878) allows public officials to refuse to perform homosexual “marriages” if it violates their religious beliefs. The second, Senate Bill 1738 (SB 1738), prevents discrimination against Christians and others with traditional views who wish to adopt children.
The General Assembly passed House Joint Resolution 81 (HJR 81), advancing a proposed constitutional amendment to prohibit property taxes. If enacted, this amendment would be a significant protection of private-property rights.
Last, but not least, the General Assembly enacted Senate Bill 591 (SB 591), which limits the powers and scope of civilian review boards, helping restore proper checks and balances in local law enforcement.
“Education is our total strategy, and truth is our only weapon”
Robert Welch