Many committee members are especially sensitive to the idea that large changes may not be able to muster the supermajorities--three-fourths for constitutional amendments, two-thirds for bylaw amendments--needed to enact them.
At the committee's last meeting, committee members postponed discussion of Smith's proposal until after spring break, when Smith says he would present a more detailed plan. They chose instead to comb through the constitution's text to pick out inconsistencies and errors.
For instance, references to "Dean of Students" (a position that no longer exists) were changed to "Dean of the College."
And some believe this is just about all the Constitutional Committee ought to do.
"It's just not going to happen," says Burton of the larger scale reform proposals. He urged the committee to focus on the areas it was created to look at. "This doesn't address elections; this doesn't address impeachment," he said of Smith's plan.
Even Brian Smith says large-scale reform will be an uphill battle.
"If we agree on anything, each of us is going to have to sit down with each and every member of the council and convince them," he says.