We the People

On Tuesday, October 3, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Community Financial Services Association of America. Industry groups representing payday lenders brought a challenge arguing that the CFPB funding structure is unconstitutional under the Appropriations Clause. The outcome of the case could have big effects not just on the future of the CFPB itself, but on the economy, markets, and the future of the administrative state. In this episode, two leading constitutional law scholars and Supreme Court experts—Brianne Gorod of the Constitutional Accountability Center, and Professor Jennifer Mascott of the Antonin Scalia Law School— join Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen to recap the oral arguments in the CFPB case, what questions or issues the justices were the most focused on, and predict how the Court might rule. Resources: CFPB v. CFSAA (oral argument transcript) Brianne Gorod/Constitutional Accountability Center, Amicus Brief in support of petitioners Jennifer Mascott/Separation of Power Clinic, Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State, Amicus Brief of 132 members of Congress in support of respondents Seila Law v. CFPB (2020) Appropriations Clause, Interactive Constitution Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected]. Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

On Monday, October 2, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court will begin hearing cases for the 2023-24 term. It is likely to be yet another landmark term for the Court, with cases on the docket about the scope of the right to bear arms; whether Chevron will be overturned; the future of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau; the First Amendment and social media; and more. Adam Liptak of The New York Times and Sarah Isgur, host of Advisory Opinions, join host Jeffrey Rosen, to preview the term, discuss the major cases and how the Court might rule. Resources: United States v. Rahimi, SCOTUSblog Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, SCOTUSblog CFPB v. Consumer Financial Services Association, SCOTUSblog Lindke v. Freed and O’Conner-Radcliffe v Garnier, SCOTUSblog PruneYard Shopping Ctr v. Robins (1980) Murthy v. Missouri, SCOTUSBlog Sarah Isgur and David French, The Problem With “History and Tradition,” Advisory Opinions podcast (Feb. 2023) Sarah Isgur and David French, The Gobsmacking Guns Case, Advisory Opinions podcast (Nov. 2022) Adam Liptak, “Biden Asks Supreme Court to Lift Limits on Contacts With Social Media Sites,” New York Times (Sep. 2023) Adam Liptak and Glenn Thrush, “Supreme Court to Hear Major Guns Case Involving Domestic Violence,” New York Times (Jun. 2023) Adam Liptak, “Supreme Court to Decide Whether Officials Can Block Critics on Social Media,” New York Times (Apr. 2023) Adam Liptak,“Supreme Court to Take Up Case on Fate of Consumer Watchdog,"New York Times(Feb. 2023) Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected]. Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

How did America’s founders view religious liberty? What does it mean today? And to what does the Constitution require religious exemptions from generally applicable laws? Marci Hamilton, author of God vs. the Gavel: The Perils of Extreme Religious Liberty, and Michael McConnell, co-author of Agreeing to Disagree: How the Establishment Clause Protects Religious Diversity and Freedom of Conscience, join for a special Constitution Day discussion to celebrate the opening of the Center’s new First Amendment gallery. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. Resources: National Constitution Center’s First Amendment gallery Marci Hamilton, God vs. the Gavel: The Perils of Extreme Religious Liberty (2014) Marci Hamilton, “‘Warped history’: How the U.S. supreme court justified gutting gay rights,” The Guardian (Aug 23, 2023) “Prof. Michael McConnell (Stanford) on 303 Creative (the Web Site Designer / Same-Sex Wedding Case),” Volokh Conspiracy (Dec. 2022) Michael McConnell, Agreeing to Disagree: How the Establishment Clause Protects Religious Diversity and Freedom of Conscience (2023) Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected]. Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

The National Constitution Center, in partnership with a coalition of leading free speech organizations, convened a National First Amendment Summit on September 13, 2023, to discuss the increasing threats to freedom of expression and to celebrate the opening of the Center’s new First Amendment gallery. The third panel of the event, “The First Amendment on Campus and Online,” examined the increasing conflicts involving free speech on campuses and online in an age of social media, artificial intelligence, and other new technologies. Speakers included Will Creeley, legal director at FIRE, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression; Jeannie Suk Gersen, professor at Harvard Law School; and Nadine Strossen, emerita professor at New York Law School and former ACLU president. The program was moderated by Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center. Resources: Will Creeley and Geoffrey R. Stone, Restoring Free Speech on Campus, The Washington Post (Sept. 25, 2015) Jeannie Suk Gersen, What If Trigger Warnings Don’t Work?, The New Yorker (Sept. 28, 2021) Jeannie Suk Gersen, The Trouble With Teaching Rape Law, The New Yorker (Dec. 15, 2014) Jeannie Suk Gersen, Shutting Down Conversations About Rape at Harvard Law, The New Yorker (Dec 11, 2015) Jeannie Suk Gersen, The Socratic Method in the Age of Trauma, Harvard Law Review ( 2017) Nadine Strossen, Free Speech: What Everyone Needs to Know (Oct. 2023) Nadine Strossen, Hate: Why We Should Resist It With Free Speech, Not Censorship (2018) Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected]. Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

This summer, the Senate Judiciary Committee approved legislation that would attempt to set ethics rules for the U.S. Supreme Court and a process to enforce them, including rules for transparency around recusals, gifts, and conflicts of interest. The bill, which still requires full Senate approval, is the latest in a series of proposals and attempts to reform or improve the Supreme Court in recent years. In this episode of We the People, we discuss various proposals to reform ethics rules surrounding the Supreme Court; how and whether these proposals could go into effect; and what the enforcement mechanisms could be. Law professors Daniel Hemel of NYU Law and Daniel Epps of Washington University School of Law join host Jeffrey Rosen. Resources: S.359 - Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act of 2023 (Sen. Whitehouse) S.325 - Supreme Court Ethics Act (Sen. Murphy) Daniel Epps and Ganesh Sitaraman, “The Future of Supreme Court Reform” (2021) Daniel Hemel, “Can Structural Changes Fix the Supreme Court?” (2021) Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected].  Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr.   Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly.  You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library. 

Two constitutional law scholars—Will Baude and Michael Stokes Paulsen—recently published an in-depth article arguing that President Donald Trump is disqualified for running for reelection under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. In this episode, law professors Mark Graber and Michael McConnell join host Jeffrey Rosen to discuss what Section 3 means and how it applies to disqualification from office; whether President Trump's actions qualify as engaging in insurrection; whether or not Section 3 is self-executing and who can enforce it, and more. Resources: William Baude & Michael Stokes Paulsen, “The Sweep and Force of Section Three” (Aug. 2023) Mark Graber, “Their Fourteenth Amendment, Section 3 and Ours,”Just Security (Feb 2021) Mark Graber, Punish Treason, Reward Loyalty: The Forgotten Goals of Constitutional Reform After the Civil War (2023) Michael McConnell, Responding About the Fourteenth Amendment, “Insurrection,” and Trump, Volokh Conspiracy (Aug. 2023) Questions or comments about the show? Email us at . Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

Described in The Federalist as “the celebrated Montesquieu,” Charles de Montesquieu was cited more often than any other author from 1760-1800. In what ways did his writings and ideas help shape the U.S. Constitution and the structure of American government? William B. Allen of Michigan State University, Thomas Pangle of the University of Texas at Austin, Dennis Rasmussen of Syracuse University, and Diana Schaub of the American Enterprise Institute, discuss the political thought of Montesquieu and his influence on American democracy. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. This program was originally streamed live on July 6, 2023, as part of our America’s Town Hall program series. Resources: Montesquieu, The Spirit of the Laws: A Critical Edition, ed. William B. Allen Dennis Rasmussen, Fears of a Setting Sun: The Disillusionment of America's Founders Diana Schaub, Erotic Liberalism: Women and Revolution in Montesquieu’s Persian Letters Diana Schaub, “Montesquieu on the Liberty of Women,” in The Cambridge Companion to Montesquieu Dennis Rasmussen, The Pragmatic Enlightenment: Recovering the Liberalism of Hume, Smith, Montesquieu, and Voltaire Thomas Pangle, Montesquieu’s Philosophy of Liberalism: A Commentary on the Spirit of the Laws Thomas Pangle, The Theological Basis of Liberal Modernity in Montesquieu’s Spirit of the Laws Thomas Pangle, “Considerations on the Romans,” in The Cambridge Companion to Montesquieu Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected]. Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly. You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

Christopher Beem, author of The Seven Democratic Virtues: What You Can Do to Overcome Tribalism and Save Our Democracy; Richard Haass, author of The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens; and Lorraine Pangle, author of Reason and Character: The Moral Foundations of Aristotelian Political Philosophy, discuss the concepts of civic virtue and citizenship in democratic societies. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. This program was originally streamed live on March 30, 2023, as part of our America’s Town Hall series.  This program was made possible through the generous support of Citizen Travelers, the nonpartisan civic engagement initiative of Travelers. Resources: Richard Haass, The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens Christopher Beem, The Seven Democratic Virtues: What You Can Do to Overcome Tribalism and Save Our Democracy Lorraine Pangle, Reason and Character: The Moral Foundations of Aristotelian Political Philosophy Lorraine and Thomas Pangle, The Learning of Liberty: The Educational Ideas of the American Founders Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected].  Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr. Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly.  You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.

Earlier this month, President Trump was indicted in federal court in Washington, D.C. for conspiring to overturn the 2020 presidential elections. Judge J. Michael Luttig joins Jeffrey Rosen for a conversation about the constitutional and historical questions raised by the indictment. Resources:  Jeffrey Rosen, “The Founders Anticipated the Threat of Trump,” Wall Street Journal (Aug. 4, 2023)  “Former federal judge J. Michael Luttig on Jan. 6 indictment and American democracy,” Washington Post (Aug. 9, 2023)  Indictment, United States of America v. Donald Trump, Department of Justice (Aug. 1, 2023)  “How to Prevent Another January 6th,” We the People podcast (June 16, 2022)  “The Mob, the Capitol, and the Constitution” We the People podcast (Jan. 7, 2021)    Questions or comments about the show? Email us at [email protected].   Continue today’s conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr.      Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly.      You can find transcripts for each episode on the podcast pages in our Media Library.  

In this episode, a panel of libertarian and conservative scholars—J. Joel Alicea of the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law, Anastasia Boden of the Cato Institute, and Sherif Girgis of Notre Dame Law School—explore the different strands of originalism as a constitutional methodology. They also explore the Roberts Court’s application of originalism in recent cases, and how originalism intersects with textualism and other interpretive approaches. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. This program was originally streamed live on June 28, 2023.    Additional Resources  Moore v. Harper (2023)  New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen (2023)  Grutter v. Bollinger (2002)  District of Columbia v. Heller (2008)  Bostock v. Clayton County (2020)  Counterman v. Colorado (2023)   J. Joel Alicea, “The Moral Authority of Original Meaning,” Notre Dame Law Review (2022)   Joel Alicea, “Originalism and the Rule of the Dead,” National Affairs (2022)  Sherif Girgis,  “Living Traditionalism,” N.Y.U. L.Rev (2023)  Sherif Gergis, “Dobb's History and the future of Abortion Laws,” SCOTUSblog (2022)  Anastasia Boden, “Supreme Court's Sidestep Leaves Native Kids Without Answers,” Volokh Conspiracy (June 2023)  Anastasia Boden, “Discourse: Irrational Basis,” Pacific Legal Foundation, (August 2022)    Stay Connected and Learn More  Continue the conversation on Facebook and Twitter using @ConstitutionCtr.  Sign up to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate, at bit.ly/constitutionweekly.  Please subscribe to Live at the National Constitution Center and our companion podcast We the People on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, or your favorite podcast app.