Live at the National Constitution Center

On Presidents Day, National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen moderated a discussion about the diverse cast of characters that helped to found the nation, including America’s early presidents. Jeff was joined by historians Joanne Freeman of Yale who is also a host of the podcast Backstory, Robert McDonald of West Point, and Peter Onuf of the University of Virginia—all of whom are contributors to the new volume Revolutionary Prophecies: The Founders and America’s Future.Additional resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-libraryQuestions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

How can we “restore the guardrails” of democracy? We examine that question and consider ways to strengthen American constitutional and democratic institutions against current and future threats and insurrections in the aftermath of the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Leading commentators Anne Applebaum, SNF Agora Senior Fellow, Pulitzer-prize winning historian, and staff writer for The Atlantic; Daniel Ziblatt, political scientist and a professor at Harvard University and co-author of How Democracies Die; Pulitzer-prize winning journalist George Will; and political scientist William Allen, join moderator Jeffrey Rosen for a wide-ranging conversation. This program is presented in partnership with the SNF Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University. Resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-libraryQuestions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

In the wake of election 2020, we partnered with the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law to present its annual symposium exploring the past, present, and future of presidential elections. Jeffrey Rosen moderates a three-part conversation.Panel one on the origins of presidential elections and the electoral college at America’s founding features: William Ewald, professor of law and philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania. Kim Lane Scheppele, Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Sociology and International Affairs and the University Center for Human Values at Princeton University. Jack Rakove, emeritus William Robertson Coe Professor of History and American Studies, and Professor of Political Science and (by courtesy) Law at Stanford University Panel two on the more recent history of presidential elections, including the 2020 election, features: Edward Foley, the Ebersold Chair in Constitutional Law at The Ohio State University where he also directs the election law program Alexander Keyssar, the Matthew W. Stirling Jr. Professor of History and Social Policy at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University Guy-Uriel Charles, the Edward and Ellen Schwarzman Professor of Law at Duke Law School and co-director of the Duke Law Center on Law, Race and Politics Panel three, looking ahead to the future of our presidential elections system features: Jesse Wegman, member of The New York Times editorial board Bradley A. Smith, Josiah H. Blackmore II/Shirley M. Nault Designated Professor of Law at Capital University Law School Joel Benenson, founder and CEO of the Benenson Strategy Group Matthew Dowd, chief political analyst for ABC News

Attorneys General Phil Weiser of Colorado and Mark Brnovich of Arizona join for a bipartisan conversation on issues facing their states today, and what the Constitution—particularly the system of federalism—means to them and why it matters. They discuss everything from the founders’ vision of states’ rights to key Supreme Court cases on the subject, to issues they’re focused on and tackling in their states now, including managing coronavirus relief, elections and election reform, tech policy, consumer protection laws and lawsuits, and more. They also discuss the crucial roles that local governments and state AGs play in the constitutional system, and how state AGs can work together in bipartisan coalitions to fill in gaps left by the federal government on a number of issues. This program is presented in partnership with the Center for Excellence in Governance at the National Association of Attorneys General.Resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-libraryQuestions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

In this 2016 conversation from our archives, leading constitutional scholar Akhil Reed Amar of Yale Law School shares foundational lessons about the Constitution. He discusses his book The Constitution Today: Timeless Lessons for the Issues of Our Era with National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen.Additional resources and transcript available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library.Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

In an online program hosted earlier this year, bestselling historian Lynne Cheney discusses her new book, The Virginia Dynasty, a vivid account of the intersecting lives and accomplishments of the first four U.S. presidents from Virginia—George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and James Monroe. Cheney explores how these friends and rivals led in winning independence, drafting the U.S. Constitution, and building a working republic. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates.Additional resources and a transcript are available at constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/media-library.Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Jane Mansbridge, author of the award-winning Why We Lost the ERA, Carol Jenkins, president and CEO of the ERA Coalition and Fund for Women’s Equality, and Inez Feltscher Stepman of the Independent Women’s Forum joined to explore the Equal Rights Amendment and discuss their differing viewpoints on it with National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen. They shared insights from their research and advocacy for and against the ERA, debated whether it has met the requirements under Article V to be adopted into the Constitution, discussed its recent ratification in Virginia and Nevada, and ongoing litigation surrounding it, as well as what’s next and what would change if, someday, the ERA were adopted. This program is made possible through the generous support of the McNulty Foundation in partnership with the Anne Welsh McNulty Institute for Women's Leadership at Villanova University and as part of the Center’s yearlong initiative, Women and the Constitution, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the 19th Amendment. Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

A panel of experts dives into what the Founders—including Abigail and John Adams, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Mercy Otis Warren, and Phyllis Wheatley—learned from the Greeks and Romans, from their early education through adulthood, and how that knowledge came to influence founding documents such as the Constitution as well as the American idea. They also explore the Founders’ philosophical understanding of passion versus reason, the meaning of “happiness,” and more. Historians and authors Caroline Winterer and Carl Richard and Pultizer Prize-winning journalist Thomas Ricks joined National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen. Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

From Ben Franklin to George Washington to Abraham Lincoln—American founders and many early Americans read and revered Shakespeare. As a result, echoes of Shakespeare can be heard in some of the most fundamental documents in American history, including the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, and Shakespearean themes and influences have resonated throughout some of America’s biggest crises, from the Civil War to COVID-19. Last week, three of America’s leading authorities on Shakespeare— Barry Edelstein of The Old Globe Theater in San Diego; Kevin Hayes, author of the new book, Shakespeare and the Making of America; and Lucas Morel of Washington and Lee University and author of Lincoln and the American Founding—joined National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen for a look at how Shakespeare has shaped the country, and how his work relates to American constitutional values today.  Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Religious freedom advocate Kristina Arriaga and scholar Stephanie Barclay of Notre Dame Law School joined constitutional scholars Erwin Chemerinsky and Howard Gillman, authors of The Religion Clauses: The Case for Separating Church and State, to debate what the Constitution says about the relationship between church and state and provide their take on the most recent religious liberty Supreme Court cases. Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, moderates. Questions or comments about the show? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.