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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, Through a persistent decade-long crusade that |
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culminated in changing the U.S. Constitution, Gregory D. Watson of |
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Austin has earned the unique distinction of completing what |
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Founding Father James Madison left unfinished as well as |
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successfully getting the overall course grade for his 1982 |
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University of Texas at Austin government class elevated from a C to |
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an A after the intervention of 35 years; and |
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WHEREAS, In the spring of 1982, Mr. Watson, then a UT |
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student, was enrolled in a Government 310 course on American |
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government; while researching a term paper on the proposed Equal |
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Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, he happened upon some |
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old constitutional amendments that had been proposed by Congress |
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but not ratified by enough state legislatures to officially become |
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part of the federal Constitution; and |
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WHEREAS, One such amendment, dated 1789, mandated that any |
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approved congressional pay raise not take effect until after the |
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next biennial election; the measure specifically reads that "No |
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law, varying the compensation for the services of the Senators and |
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Representatives, shall take effect, until an election of |
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Representatives shall have intervened"; only nine states had |
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ratified that measure by 1978, and ratification by three-fourths of |
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the states is required before an amendment to the Constitution can |
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be certified; at the same time, the compensation amendment included |
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no ratification deadline, in contrast to amendments proposed since |
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the year 1917, when Congress began the practice of including a |
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provision requiring that proposed federal constitutional |
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amendments be ratified by the states within seven years; and |
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WHEREAS, Inspired to change the focus of his research, |
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Mr. Watson submitted a paper suggesting that unratified |
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constitutional amendments from before 1917, which did not contain |
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the built-in time limit, could still be ratified, even 200 years |
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later, if they received the support of enough states; he further |
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noted in the paper that there continued to be concerns among the |
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American people relative to the methods used by members of Congress |
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to increase congressional salaries; the course instructor and her |
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teaching assistant were not convinced, however, and Mr. Watson |
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received a grade of C for the paper and a final grade of C for the |
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course overall; and |
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WHEREAS, Shortly afterward, in April 1982, Mr. Watson |
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embarked upon a labor-intensive campaign to prove the thesis of his |
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paper; he began the 10-year process of writing letters to |
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legislators in states across the nation, urging them to consider |
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ratifying the measure, and by May 5, 1992, Alabama lawmakers |
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furnished the pivotal 38th ratification, thus making it the 27th |
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Amendment to the Constitution; since then, eight more states have |
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ratified the amendment--most recently Nebraska in 2016--bringing |
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the total to 46 of the 50 states; and |
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WHEREAS, Impressed by what she publicly described as |
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Mr. Watson's "heroic effort" to prove the validity of his thesis, |
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his former professor has officially requested that his grade for |
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Government 310 be raised from a C to an A; Mr. Watson was informed |
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of her decision in March 2017, when he was invited to attend what he |
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thought would be a mere Q and A about his work on the 27th Amendment |
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and unexpectedly found his campaign being recounted in Pop-Up |
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Magazine, a live news program performed onstage and resembling a |
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stand-up comedy routine; and |
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WHEREAS, Mr. Watson has continued to be engaged in federal |
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constitutional amendment issues: in 1995, at his prompting, the |
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Mississippi Legislature symbolically post-ratified the |
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Constitution's 13th Amendment, abolishing slavery; at his urging, |
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the Tennessee General Assembly ceremonially post-ratified the 15th |
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Amendment in 1997, extending the right to vote to former male |
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slaves; and, at his behest, the Texas Legislature, in 2009, |
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formally endorsed the end of poll taxes by post-ratifying the 24th |
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Amendment; furthermore, references to Mr. Watson's constitutional |
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amendment-related activities are chronicled in countless books, |
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newspapers, magazines, law reviews, video and audio recordings, |
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resolutions, and entries in the Congressional Record; and |
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WHEREAS, Gregory Watson's dogged determination resulted in a |
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significant change in this nation's founding document, and he may |
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indeed take great pride in his achievement and in his demonstration |
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of what committed civic engagement can accomplish; now, therefore, |
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be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 85th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby congratulate Gregory D. Watson on receiving a revised grade |
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of A in his 1982 Government 310 class at The University of Texas at |
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Austin--albeit after the intervention of 35 years--and extend to |
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him sincere best wishes for continued success and happiness; and, |
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be it further |
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RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be |
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prepared for Mr. Watson as an expression of high regard by the Texas |
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House of Representatives and Senate. |