Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

Petitioning Congress, Restoring a Basic Constitutional Right

Petitioning Congress, Restoring a Basic Constitutional Right

A person signing papers.

Pexels, Cytonn Photography

Now and then, like an old but long-forgotten friend, something we once valued greatly involuntarily comes to mind, reminding us how much we have changed. So, it is with our right to petition the members of Congress.

Lest we forget…American colonists went to war to preserve their ability to complain to their government. In 1775, members of the Second Continental Congress sent George III a petition, asking that they be allowed to negotiate with him in order to avoid conflict. As British subjects, they could expect this appeal would reach the king as petitioning had been granted by the English monarchy for nearly a century. But, George flatly refused to accept the colonists’ plea, dismissively branding them as traitors. Largely out of frustration with this response, the assembled legislators voted to declare the colonies’ independence and settle this issue on the battlefield. Thus, not surprisingly, when the Bill of Rights was drafted after the Revolution, petitioning the government was enshrined in the First Amendment as a fundamental right that could never be “abridged.”


Fast forward to the 1990s: email was becoming widely used and members of Congress were wary about how they would be able to deal with this new means of communication. Their staff was already swamped by the daily avalanche of letters and the legislators could not see how they could manage a much greater deluge, arriving through the Internet. So, quietly, without putting this policy into law, the lawmakers changed the rules for corresponding with them: henceforth, only mail from constituents would be accepted. Inquiries, comments, suggestions, and criticism from persons residing outside their Congressional districts and (for Senators) states would be refused. Ironically, members of the U.S. Congress took their stand on the side of George III.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

Today, petitioning any and all members of Congress remains an inconvenient, neglected right. While it is unequivocally affirmed in our Constitution (as a “cognate” right, promoting democracy) and unambiguously protected by federal law, the scope of petitioning has been greatly reduced: out of 535 members of the legislative branch, you and I have access only to three—our two Senators and one member of the House. (Groups can still send petitions to all legislators: it’s only individuals who are so limited.) As far as I know, over the past 30 years, not a single member of Congress has argued that this residency requirement is unconstitutional, let alone proposing to get rid of it. (When you hear a lawmaker suggest “Write to your Congressman,” he is really telling you that your opinion doesn’t matter to him.) Meanwhile, lobbyists, special-interest groups, and—of course—donors face no such barriers. Money and powerful influence can flow uninterrupted across district and state lines, while ordinary citizen mail cannot.

What is to be done about this unlawful practice that is so inimical to engaging ordinary Americans with the legislative process? (Public opinion polls indicate that the perceived indifference of lawmakers to public interests is making Congress increasingly unpopular.) If members of the House and Senate violate the Constitution, we, logically, might seek a remedy in the courts, but there’s no sympathetic ear there either. Recently, a case that I had brought in Connecticut, challenging petition restrictions, was dismissed by a district court judge on the grounds that Congressional communications are a “legislative activity,” and, as such, enjoy “absolute immunity” from judicial review. And Congress, well…that’s the door that’s already tightly shut.

It seems that our best hope lies with technology. In the age of AI, arguments about Congressional offices being overwhelmed by mass mailings no longer hold any water. They can no longer justify limitations on restricting public access. To drive home this point and convince Congress to change its ways, citizens will need to make use of the petition itself—by organizing a massive grassroots campaign to advocate for the restoration of this once sacred, inviolable, and unrestricted right. Petitioning is as important nowadays as the Founders intended it to be, not as George III wanted it to be.

John V. H. Dippel, an independent historian, has written several books on various topics in modern American and European history. In the late 1960s, he successfully petitioned several Senators to take up the cause of increasing First Amendment rights for members of the U.S. military. He welcomes the chance to lay out the case for doing so now through The Fulcrum.

Read More

The African American Mayors Association holds its 11th annual conference, this year in Washington, D.C.

The African American Mayors Association holds its 11th annual conference, this year in Washington, D.C.

Imagine Photography, Heaven Brown

Job Cuts, Climate Threats, and the Power of Now: Black Mayors Seek Strength in Solidarity

WASHINGTON – Black mayors from across the country gathered in the nation’s capital for the annual African American Mayors Association Conference last week and strategized ways to govern their cities despite ongoing federal job cuts and recent actions coming from the Trump administration.

At the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, President Donald Trump conducted his second round of mass firings. Those who were not fired were told to go back to in-person work the same week in late March.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pope Francis and Democracy: Navigating Beliefs and Political Systems
person wearing white cap looking down under cloudy sky during daytime

Pope Francis and Democracy: Navigating Beliefs and Political Systems

Pope Francis is being remembered for his reformist stance that both challenged conservative elements within the Catholic Church and resonated with progressive movements. The 88-year-old Argentina-born pontiff passed away on Monday following a series of health complications.

The leader of the Roman Catholic Church often shared his perspectives on various societal issues, including the relationship between faith and democracy. His tenure as pope was marked by a commitment to social justice, human rights, and the dignity of all individuals, which naturally intersects with democratic ideals.

Keep ReadingShow less
Public Perspectives: Trump Presidency

U.S. President Donald Trump prepares to watch the Ultimate Fighting Championship at the Kaseya Center on April 12, 2025 in Miami, Florida.

(Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Public Perspectives: Trump Presidency

Ahead of Election Day 2024, the Fulcrum launched We the People, a series elevating the voices and visibility of the persons most affected by the decisions of elected officials.

Now, we continue the series to learn if the Donald Trump administration is meeting the voters' motivations for voting in the 2024 presidential election.

Keep ReadingShow less
CO lawmakers work to protect voter rights after Trump elections order

More than 95% of all voters in the United States use paper ballots in elections.

Adobe Stock

CO lawmakers work to protect voter rights after Trump elections order

Some Colorado lawmakers are scrambling to protect voter rights after President Donald Trump issued an executive order to require proof of citizenship to register to vote. They say the requirement would disproportionately affect low-income voters and people of color.

David Becker, executive director of the Center for Election Innovation and Research, said the language in the U.S. Constitution is very clear that the authority to run elections is delegated to individual states.

"Everyone - Republican, Democrat, liberal, conservative - wants to keep ineligible voters off the list. And there's always some value in discussing how to do it better," he explained. "Unfortunately that's not what this executive order does. It's really a remarkable seizure of power from the states."

Trump has cast doubt on the integrity of American elections for years, despite evidence that fraud is extremely rare. The new order claims the nation has failed "to enforce basic and necessary election protections," and would allow the Department of Homeland Security and 'DOGE' to access state voter rolls. Colorado Senate Bill 1 - which would bar voter discrimination based on race, sexual orientation or gender identity - has cleared the state Senate and now moves to the House.

Becker noted that Congress does have constitutional authority to change election rules, and did so most notably after passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. And in 2021, he says House Democrats passed a sweeping set of election reforms that ended up dying in the Senate.

"But at least that was done through congressional action. What we have here is an executive power grab - an attempt by the President of the United States to dictate to states how they run elections, how they should exercise the power that is granted to them by the Constitution," he continued.

Becker noted the new order suggests serious misunderstandings, intentional or not, about the nation's election system, which he says is secure. It's already illegal for non-U.S. citizens to vote, and voter lists are as accurate as they've ever been. More than 95% of all U.S. voters use paper ballots, which are available in all states, and ballots are audited to confirm results.

Sign up for The Fulcrum newsletter

Keep ReadingShow less