In The Big Short, Ryan Gosling’s character Jared Vennett punctuates a dramatic scene by exclaiming, “And Caesar wept for there were no more worlds to conquer.” I would imagine Elon Musk often feels the same. Not only has he revolutionized the auto-industry with Tesla, spread broadband internet world-wide with Starlink and supplanted NASA with SpaceX, he has reinvigorated the 1st Amendment with his $44 billion liberation of Twitter. That begs the question, “Are there any worlds left for Musk to conquer?”
Despite these mind-blowing feats, there yet remains a mountain far greater than any world Musk might subdue—a summit so towering and magnificent, he may never again thirst for a challenge were he to conquer it.
Under the U.S. Constitution, there is one office even more prestigious than the U.S. presidency and only George Washington has ever served in that capacity. He was rendered this historic honor at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 when he was elected Convention President by the attending state delegations to oversee drafting of the United States Constitution in Philadelphia!
To ensure that the new federal government they were unleashing could be reformed, under Article V our founders preserved the right of the states to reconvene the convention—via a two-thirds vote of the state legislatures (34)—to propose amendments for ratification by three-quarters of the states (38). Despite that, the convention has yet to be recalled and no one has served as Convention President since. However, if the clarion call of the mountain prevails upon Musk, Independence Hall may once again reverberate with the thunder of great debates.
The possibility is real due to Musk’s previous tweet about the dangerous size of the U.S. national debt. That, when coupled with the recent spike in interest rates, will result in an interest payment nearing $1 trillion or 25% of federal revenue! And as it borrows trillions more each year, Congress will push us towards bankruptcy/default, or even worse, an investor panic which crashes Wall Street. That portends Musk’s likely support for a Balanced Budget Amendment (BBA)—to be proposed via convention—which could see him succeed Washington.
During the 1980s, President Reagan led the BBA campaign to 32 of 34 states needed to reconvene the convention. Sadly, he didn’t quite reach the summit, thwarting his chance to succeed Washington. However, should Musk follow in Reagan’s footsteps, the mountaintop awaits.
Over the last decade, I’ve led the national campaign for a Balanced Budget Amendment to 27 of 34 states required to reconvene the convention. To bolster the effort, I’ve recruited all-stars like former Vice President Mike Pence, former Governor Mike Huckabee, and sitting Governors like Chris Sununu (R, NH), Kevin Stitt (R, OK) and Spencer Cox (R, UT). All we need now is a swashbuckling business magnate to ride shotgun as we close in on the final 7 states. Should Musk elect to mount up, he would be the easy choice for Convention President.
This would be one of the greatest moments in U.S. history. It would eclipse all else in American politics as the nation’s attention was drawn to a fascinating constitutional process in which the states rebel against Washington within the system. All 50 states would send delegations back to Philadelphia where they would decide whether or not to propose a Balanced Budget Amendment for ratification.
Not only is this campaign historic and critical to the financial survival of our republic, it likely offers the greatest return-on-investment (ROI) in world history. With a $5 million ante, the BBA campaign would protect the U.S. economy—which boasts a $25 trillion GDP—from the threat posed by the debt-addicts in Congress. That’s an ROI of 5 million to 1 to save the American dream!
Now that Musk has conquered the business world, he is giving back to America. While his purchase of Twitter was certainly business-driven, it is clear he also viewed it as a way to return freedom to the public square. The only way Musk could top that would be to save America’s free-market economy by taking up Ronald Reagan’s torch, and he could do so at a fraction of the price!
Were Musk to follow up his heroic defense of free-speech by spearheading the Balanced Budget Amendment campaign, he could (1) lead the first effort in U.S. history to recall the convention, (2) succeed George Washington as Convention President, (3) achieve the greatest constitutional reform of the last 100 years, and (4) prevent Congress from bankrupting America.
That alone renders this unorthodox public recruitment attempt highly worthwhile. However, it wasn’t my idea alone. While I’d often pondered how to involve Musk and who might succeed Washington, I’d never connected the two until I saw Musk’s recent Twitter-post of a picture that included a painting of George Washington on his night-stand. That’s when I imagined him in this fabled role.
The great irony is that the looming threat of a Musk-led convention might actually avert a convention by motivating Congress to propose the amendment in order to control its drafting. Historically, that’s what prompted Congress to propose the 17th Amendment and that would be preferable today. However it plays out, the adoption of a Balanced Budget Amendment would thrust Musk directly into legend. It would prevent national bankruptcy and thus preserve the right of every American to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness!
And having rendered a national service far greater than that of most U.S. Presidents, Musk would soar into America’s pantheon of national heroes to join the likes of Reagan and Washington—a future reward to challenge a man who has seemingly conquered everything. I hope Musk is ready to saddle up and ride, for historic immortality awaits!
Loren J. Enns is a Network Engineer, Author, and Constitutional Reformer. He presently leads the national campaign for a Balanced Budget Amendment which includes supporters like former Vice President Mike Pence, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu and U.S. Senator Lindsay Graham. You can contact Loren: Loren@OperationBBA4USA.org