yahoopolitics:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry has many ideas about how to change the government’s founding document. From ending lifetime tenure for federal judges to completely scrapping two whole amendments, the U.S. Constitution would see a major overhaul if the GOP presidential candidate had his druthers.

Perry has laid out these proposed innovations to the founding document in his book, Fed Up! Our Fight to Save America from Washington, and occasionally referenced them on  the campaign trail. Several of his ideas fall within the realm of mainstream conservative thinking today, but, as you will see, there are also a few surprises.

Here’s a rundown of Perry’s suggestions for revamping the Constitution:

1. Abolish lifetime tenure for federal judges by amending Article III, Section I of the Constitution.

The nation’s framers established a federal court system whereby judges with “good behavior” would be secure in their job for life. Perry believes that provision is ready for an overhaul.

“The Judges,” reads Article III, “both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices during good Behavior, and shall, at stated Times, receive for their Services a Compensation which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.”

Perry makes it no secret that he believes the judges on the bench over the past century have acted beyond their constitutional bounds. The problem, Perry reasons, is that members of the judiciary are “unaccountable” to the people, and their lifetime tenure gives them free license to act however they want. In his book, the governor speaks highly of plans to limit their tenure and offers proposals about how to accomplish it.

”’[W]e should take steps to restrict the unlimited power of the courts to rule over us with no accountability,” he writes in Fed Up! ”There are a number of ideas about how to do this … . One such reform would be to institute term limits on what are now lifetime appointments for federal judges, particularly those on the Supreme Court or the circuit courts, which have so much power. One proposal, for example, would have judges roll off every two years based on seniority.”

2. Congress should have the power to override Supreme Court decisions with a two-thirds vote.

Restricting tenure of federal justices isn’t the only way Perry wants to suppress the power of the courts. His book excoriates at length what he sees as overreach from the judicial branch. (To give you a sample of how Perry has warmed to this theme, the title of Chapter Six is, “Nine Unelected Judges Tell Us How to Live.”)

Giving Congress the ability to override their decisions would be another way to take the Court down a notch, Perry says.

“[A]llow Congress to override the Supreme Court with a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, which risks increased politicization of judicial decisions, but also has the benefit of letting the people stop the Court from unilaterally deciding policy.”

3. Scrap the federal income tax by repealing the Sixteenth Amendment.

The Sixteenth Amendment gives Congress the “power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration” and should be abolished immediately, Perry says.

Calling the Sixteenth Amendment “the great milestone on the road to serfdom,” Perry’s main point of contention is that it provides a virtually blank check to the federal government to use for projects with little or no consultation from the states.

For the other four, please head on over to The Ticket

In other words, Rick Perry likes the Constitution except for the part where it means or does anything.