The Convention Trap
How the Far Right’s Constitutional Coup Is Advancing Under Trump II—Before the Left Wakes Up.
By Dr. Ike Wilson for Compound Security, Unlocked
“You do not change the Constitution by breaking it. You change it by pretending to protect it.”
Article V, U.S. Constitution
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes, as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress;
Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.
I. Introduction: The Structural Coup Has Already Begun
Six months into the second Trump Administration, the media is still obsessed with spectacle: purged agencies, rogue executive orders, protest crackdowns, and mounting indictments of political opponents. But beneath the chaos lies a much quieter, much more permanent insurgency—the movement to radically rewrite the U.S. Constitution itself.
The Convention of States (CoS) project, years in the making and now openly endorsed by senior Trump White House officials and GOP governors, is not a theoretical threat. It is the institutionalized wing of the post-Constitutional Right, and it is accelerating fast. With Trump II flooding federal agencies with ideologues, stacking courts, and weaponizing federalism, the CoS movement is poised to take the final step: triggering an Article V convention that hands state delegations the power to rewrite the rules of American government.
It’s not fringe. It’s not future. It’s happening now. And while MAGA-GOP statehouses are coordinated and prepared, the democratic Left remains disorganized, reactive, and dangerously behind the curve.
II. The Article V Play: A Legal Insurrection
Article V of the Constitution allows two-thirds of state legislatures (34) to call a constitutional convention to propose amendments. As of today, 19 GOP-controlled states have passed official or quasi-official resolutions supporting this move. ALEC, the Federalist Society, and Trump-aligned think tanks like the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 are pushing hard to cross the 34-state threshold by the end of this year.
Backed by Trump II’s full-throated embrace of “states’ rights,” this movement’s goals are no secret:
Enshrine permanent minority rule via fixed electoral college powers and state gerrymandering
Mandate a federal balanced budget, gutting welfare, Medicaid, and climate spending
Impose congressional and judicial term limits to purge liberal influence
Lock in Christian nationalist moral codes under the guise of religious liberty
Strip federal regulatory agencies of power over guns, labor, environment, and education
This is not a civic convention. It’s a Constitutional Great Reset—engineered to permanently protect the MAGA state from demographic change and democratic resistance.
III. Trump II: From Strongman to Structural Revisionist
Trump’s second term, unlike the first, is focused. The chaos is now strategy. His White House has formed a “State Sovereignty Council” tasked with empowering red-state governors to nullify federal mandates, while coordinating closely with the Convention of States movement to formalize a new national charter.
It’s worth remembering: the Founders left no guardrails in Article V. Once a convention is called, there are no binding constraints on what delegates can do. They can rewrite any part of the Constitution, from the Bill of Rights to the separation of powers itself.
Trump doesn’t need Congress to pass authoritarian laws if he can re-author the document those laws are meant to follow.
And the Right is more prepared than ever. They have:
Model amendments ready
Pre-selected delegates from red states
Legal theories to prevent judicial intervention
A propaganda machine to sell it as “restoring the republic”
IV. The Left’s Asymmetry: No Plan, No Unity, No Time
What does the democratic Left have in response?
A fractured progressive coalition
State-level disorganization
Reactive protest politics
And no unified strategy to engage or counter constitutional change
Ironically, many on the Left have begun speaking seriously about decentralization—pushing regional self-determination, state-level sanctuary governance, and alternatives to federal dysfunction. But they have no constitutional infrastructure behind these ideas. No draft amendments. No “People’s Convention.” No roadmap for post-federal civic order.
What the Right is executing with surgical precision, the Left approaches with philosophical ambiguity.
The consequences are catastrophic. Because once the convention convenes—and it very well might by early 2026—the rules of American governance will be up for grabs, and only one side has shown up to play.
V. What Happens if They Win?
Let’s be brutally clear about what a Trump-era CoS could deliver:
A hard-coded Christian nationalist republic where abortion, LGBTQ+ rights, and pluralism are outlawed at the constitutional level
A de facto Confederation, with federal power gutted and red states wielding veto power over national action
A business oligarchy protected by tax ceilings, deregulated labor law, and judicial shields against civil liability
Permanent political warfare, where MAGA states entrench power through constitutional electoral bias and use “state sovereignty” to ignore federal rulings
This would not just deepen division. It would legitimize it in law, transforming the U.S. from an imperfect but centralized democratic republic into a fractured post-liberal zone of competing legal realities, dominated by reactionary red zones.
We are not talking about policy difference. We are talking about constitutional mutation.
VI. What Must Be Done—Now
If you’re waiting for the courts to stop this, don’t. The current Supreme Court is aligned with this project. If you’re waiting for Congress to act, forget it—House Republicans have endorsed the convention. If you’re waiting for a “Blue Wave,” you’ve already surrendered the calendar.
This is not a normal campaign cycle. This is a last-window moment to resist the constitutional coup.
Here’s what must happen—urgently:
1. Declare a State-Level Emergency
Progressive governors and statehouses must immediately draft anti-CoS resolutions
Launch emergency legal challenges, even symbolic, to slow the convention count
Establish state constitutional commissions to prepare counter frameworks for citizen sovereignty in the event of a post-federal fracture
2. Build a Counter-Constitutional Coalition
Mobilize progressive legal scholars, state reps, and activists into a People’s Constitutional Defense Network
Fund and publish left-of-center constitutional models for democracy, rights, and federal reform
Frame the fight not as procedural—but as existential
3. Engage in Political and Narrative Disruption
Expose the CoS effort as a Constitutional Trojan Horse for authoritarianism
Use media, TikTok, Substack, and podcast networks to break through the silence
Reframe state-level fights as part of the broader national legitimacy crisis
4. Plan for Devolution on Our Terms
If the Union fractures or the Constitution is rewritten to nullify democratic governance, the Left must be prepared to pivot
Begin drafting regional civic charters that reflect pluralism, equity, and sustainability
Use devolution not as retreat, but as resistance—and rebirth
VII. Conclusion: The Constitution Won’t Save Itself
This is not a drill.
The Convention of States project is the most sophisticated structural assault on democracy in U.S. history. It is not hypothetical. It is not distant. It is a live campaign with legal standing, political momentum, and the full blessing of Trump II.
The greatest danger is not that the CoS will rewrite the Constitution.
The greatest danger is that they will do so without opposition—because too many on the Left still believe the system, somehow, will self-correct.
It won’t. Not this time.
This isn’t about repair. This is about whether the republic survives in any form we might recognize.
Let’s fight like it.
Appendix:
Article V Convention of States movement as of mid‑2025. The map shows states that have passed applications in full (both chambers), passed in one chamber, or are targets for pending legislation.
🗺️ Current Status: Convention of States
Green states: Fully passed the COS Article V resolution in both legislative chambers (the 19 states that have met the threshold necessary for a valid application).
Yellow states: Passed the resolution in one chamber only; still pending bicameral approval.
Gray/White states: No application, or not part of the current COS campaign.
📌 Metrics Summary
19 states have completed formal applications (passed in both chambers) toward triggering an Article V convention.
8 additional states have resolutions pending in one chamber only.
The Constitutional threshold to compel a convention is 34 states. We currently sit at 19 fully passed, thus needing 15 more to achieve two-thirds.
🔍 What This Means
At 19 states, the movement has solidified significant momentum—but remains 15 states short of the constitutional threshold.
Several pending legislatures (yellow states) could tip the scales if they finalize their resolutions.
The campaign is underway in many additional states, suggesting continued activity and possible future gains.