Dad Saves America Randy Barnett on Originalism, the Supreme Court, and Constitutional Law
I sat down with Randy Barnett, Professor of Constitutional Law at Georgetown University, to discuss the current state of America’s constitutional system and his mission to restore its original meaning. Despite the gradual erosion of constitutional limitations on federal government power, Randy believes that the document’s multiple fail-safes—especially federalism—have kept the flame of liberty alive, even through the trials of COVID lockdowns. Supreme Court justices appointed over the past 40 years have increasingly adopted an originalist approach to the Constitution and have begun to rein in the sprawling powers of the deep state and restore the core tenets of our founding documents.
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Follow Randy on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/RandyEBarnett
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Outline:
[0:00] Is today’s Supreme Court radically conservative?
[10:04] Progressives don’t really care about ‘democracy’
[13:27] The consequences of ending ‘Chevron deference’
[20:53] Why does judicial precedence matter?
[28:13] How ‘Roe v. Wade’ was overturned
[34:01] Is President Trump now immune from prosecution?
[42:31] What is common law? What are statutes?
[51:03] Private arbitration empowers normal people
[57:54] Why does the original meaning of the Constitution matter?
[1:11:04] The strongest criticism of originalism
[1:14:30] Has the Constitution failed to protect our freedoms?
[1:23:29] What is libertarianism and what are its blindspots?
[1:43:40] Why should we spend time arguing about ideals?
[1:48:40] Freedom is a practice, not just an abstract ideal
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Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/FVPCwD5e8_I
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