Avsnitt
-
Federally, we have 536 elected positions between Congress and the President. We then have 2.8 million federal employees. How do we limit the power among the unelected officials we have in our federal government? To tackle this very important question, the Supreme Court introduced the Chevron Doctrine (also called the Chevron Deference) as a result of the 1984 Supreme Court case Chevron USA v Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc. To help us understand the complexities of the Chevron Doctrine, how the powers of unelected officials have grown over the years and how current cases before the Supreme Court may affect these powers, we are happy to welcome to our discussion Jack Fitzhenry, Legal Fellow in the Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage Foundation.
-
Presidential immunity is in the news a lot lately. It derives from a notion that all three branches of government retain powers to execute their duties under the constitution. But there is also a tradition in our country that no one is above the law. In a nation that follows established law, not following those laws can lead to anarchy or distrust in the government. We have a lot to unpack with this very timely and relevant topic. To help us do so alongside our student panel, we are delighted to welcome fan-favorite guest Adam Carrington, associate professor of politics at Hillsdale College.
-
Saknas det avsnitt?
-
Did you know the United States Supreme Court has agreed to hear four cases pertaining to social media this term? One of the major issues is whether or not an elected official has the authority to limit speech on social media accounts by blocking critical comments pertaining to their work in office. We know government cannot prohibit your speech, but are elected officials required to permit all comments on their official pages, or can they censor them? What about their personal pages? Can the government pressure social media companies to take down posts the government seems “misinformation”? There’s a lot to unpack with these various cases so we are delighted to welcome Michael Dimino, Professor of Law at Widener University’s Commonwealth Law School for this very timely discussion.
-
Who is the Speaker of the House and what are his duties? How does a bill become law? What are the three branches of government. Let’s be honest, so many in our country are not fully educated on civics. If we don’t understand how Congress works, we get frustrated with the whole process. This leads to an overall sentiment that Congress is broken. Our guest today likes to say “without public trust, you cannot govern. Without governing, people get angry and hostile and walk away from the system.” Today, joining our student panel to discuss how we can begin to fix this, is our special guest Michael S. Johnson, author of “Fixing Congress: Restoring Power to the People.”
-
Winning a war was just the beginning for George Washington’s service to our new country. After retiring to Mount Vernon post-war, Washington saw a weakness in our country under the Articles of Confederation. He felt the future of republican democratic self-government globally was dependent on the American experiment. If it were to fail in that perfect post-war moment, man was probably not destined to govern himself. Washington’s views on what the government should look like can seem to be contradictory in that he wanted a strong central government, as opposed to what the country had under the Articles of Confederation, but he also wanted the National government to be limited. Rather than contradictory, this reveals a principled man. To discuss Washington’s vision for the country with our student panel, we are delighted to welcome back Tony Williams, Senior Teaching Fellow with the Bill of Rights Institute for this historical conversation.
-
The relationship between the federal and state governments is not always clear. These two governments exist simultaneously but at times have different goals and objectives. The federal government can use its purse strings to coerce a state government to take an action and that state can simply refuse. The Founders wanted states to solve major issues that were not under the federal purview to establish “laboratories of democracy.” Joining our all-star student panel, we are happy to welcome Ken Cuccinelli, former Virginia state senator, Virginia attorney general and Deputy Secretary, Department of Homeland Security, as we discuss this unique relationship.
-
Can you name the President? We hope yes! Can you name your state’s governor? More than likely yes. But can you name your mayor and city council members? While the issues nationally get the most attention, your local government’s actions impact your day-to-day life more. Issues like your water supply, trash pickup, sewage, and police and fire departments are all controlled by local entities. Some mayors aren’t paid a salary at all but one defining feature of mayors is they come directly out of the community in which they are serving. They are your friend and neighbor. To help us better grasp the importance of local officials, we are delighted to welcome Andrew Wambsganss, former mayor of Southlake, TX., to our podcast as we discuss the duties and responsibilities of local government officials, and why he says you can have the most impact by local government participation.
-
Regular listeners will certainly recognize this famous phrase from the Declaration of Independence: “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” As the governed who give consent to the government, we have several mechanisms through which we can give that consent and voice approval or disapproval with an elected official. Perhaps the most direct mechanism is through a town hall discussion. A town hall is simply a public meeting between an elected official and their constituents where a number of topics pertaining to upcoming or past legislation can be discussed. To help us better understand all things related to a town hall, we are delighted to have two guests joining our student panel. Rochelle Porto is a longtime Pennsylvania activist who regularly participates in town halls in her state and Rep. Lynn Stucky has represented parts of North Texas in the Texas Legislature since 2017.
-
At Constituting America, we love to talk about federalism. Federalism is a founding principle that government authority is best when one central government does not have all authority, but it is divvied up between local, state and national government. Have you ever thought about why we have this system and what its virtues are? In a large country with varied geographical interests, why does this system work? Should those closest to a problem be the ones to solve that problem, and what are the benefits of this principle of subsidiarity? To help us further grasp the virtues of federalism, we are delighted to welcome Brenda Hafera, Assistant Director and Senior Policy Analyst for the Simon Center for American Studies at The Heritage Foundation, for this engaging discussion.
-
We have a military. We have a militia. When it comes to protecting our citizens, both play a role. The same militia mentioned in the second amendment is actually defined in 10 U.S. Code § 246 as able-bodied men over 17 and under 45 years old, who are or intend to become US citizens and female citizens who are members of the National Guard. What precisely are the differences in roles of the organized and unorganized militia compared to the military? Under what circumstances is a militia’s Commander in Chief the President or a state’s governor? When can the military and militia be deployed and what are the limits placed on them such as “posse comitatus?” To help our student panel answer these questions, we are delighted to welcome back longtime friend of Constituting America, Andrew Langer. Andrew is an author, speaker, writer, frequent guest on both radio and TV programs and the President of the Institute for Liberty.
-
One of the biggest events in the news lately has been the situation at our southern border and illegal immigration. Texas, due to its lengthy border with Mexico, is front and center in this discussion that involves the role both state and federal governments play in immigration. While the U.S. Constitution says Congress has the authority to write immigration-related laws and the executive branch has the authority to implement these laws, what can a state do if the laws are not carried out? Joining our all-star student panel to answer this, we are pleased to welcome Lora Ries, Director of the Border Security and Immigration Center at The Heritage Foundation.
-
Since World War II, the United States, as the world’s lone superpower, has promoted democracy around the world with a focus on the longevity of the nation-state. After all, a nation-state that is whole and free, holds free and frequent elections and is representative of its people will tend to have greater stability, less war, more prosperity and greater trade opportunities. But as our guest discusses, lately we are seeing a greater build-up of multi-lateral and regional organizations to replace the nation-state. How can the US foster a greater reliance on the nation-state as the core unit of analysis? How can we promote relationships between nation-states, instead of regional bureaucracies, for more prosperity? Joining our student panel, we are thrilled to welcome Dr. Kiron Skinner, Taube Professor of International Relations and Politics at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy.
-
Think about the environment under which our Constitution was drafted. Our new nation had just waged and won a war for independence and was surrounded on all sides with hostility: the British in the north and their navy out to sea, the Spanish empire to the south, British and French ships patrolling the Caribbean and sometimes hostile Native American tribes to the west. Our Founders knew war was necessary but also had a healthy wariness about where the power to wage it should reside. The Founders questioned if war powers could lead to tyranny and questioned the effect of standing armies. Thus, Article 1, Section 8, Clause 11 gives this power to Congress and not the President. Joining our student panel to help us further understand why, we are pleased to welcome Reid Smith, vice president of foreign policy at Stand Together where he serves as an expert of constitutional war powers and foreign policy.
-
In 1948, the United States under President Truman became the first country to recognize the existence of Israel. Since then, the two nations have been staunch allies. This alliance is certainly being put to the test with the latest round of fighting between the state of Israel and Hamas, the Islamic group which controls Gaza. What is the legal process for the US to provide aid to Israel? What is the dual role Congress and the President play in helping our ally? To help us answer these questions and more, we are delighted to welcome Lt. General (Ret.) Keith Kellogg. General Kellogg is a retired three-star Army General and was a national security advisor to the Vice President. We are grateful he is sharing his unique expertise with our student panel.
-
Seemingly, the United States has been engaged in some armed conflict somewhere in the world for most of our lives. However, the United States has not had a formal declaration of war since World War II. How exactly does that happen? From what authority does the Congress and President engage in war or armed conflict? What is a Congressional Authorization for Use of Military Force and what are its limitations? How does all of this relate to the almost 2 year long conflict in Ukraine today? To help us answer all of these worthwhile questions with our all-star student panel, we are delighted to welcome Jamil Jaffer, Founder and Executive Director of the National Security Institute at the Antonin Scalia Law School at George Mason University, for this discussion on war powers.
-
We are wrapping up our series on the Bill of Rights with this special episode on the 10th Amendment. In just 28 words, it grants tremendous powers not to the federal government but to the states. How so? Regular viewers of our chats know Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution grants 17 specific powers to Congress. That’s it. The 10th Amendment says any powers not granted by the Constitution to the federal government are under the purview of the states or the people. The Founders did this because they were wary of a strong central government, having just fought a war against a strong central government in King George III. To help us unpack the ramifications and importance of the 10th Amendment, along with our all-star student panel we are delighted to welcome the 71st Governor of Virginia, The Honorable Robert F. “Bob” McDonnell as our special guest to discuss this special amendment.
-
The Ninth Amendment might seem a bit confusing at first glance. To understand its massive significance requires some insight into what the Founders were thinking. Think of the Bill of Rights not as granting rights to the people but rather restricting what the government can and cant do in the lives of its citizens. To wit, it would be impractical to list every right a citizen has and as such the rights specifically enumerated in the Bill of Rights should not be viewed as a limit to those rights. Helping us and our all-star student panel grasp the importance of this amendment, we are delighted to welcome Ilya Shapiro, Senior Fellow and Director of Constitutional Studies at the Manhattan Institute, as a guest on this week’s show.
-
Once again, the Founders showed their preference for brevity with the 8th Amendment. It is actually the shortest of all the amendments but packs a wallop in just 16 words! In this week’s chat, we are discussing the elements of the 8th Amendment: protections against excessive bails and fines and protections against cruel and unusual punishments. We answer what is a cruel and unusual punishment, who decides the standard by which punishment is deemed legal or illegal, how does this relate to “death-eligible” crimes in the application of the death penalty and what is the evolving standard of decency that’s used as litmus test? For this insightful conversation, we are pleased to welcome Paul McNulty, former US Attorney, Former Deputy US Attorney General and current president of Grove City College to share his knowledge and insight with our all-star student panel.
-
As we discussed last week, the Sixth Amendment guarantees a trial by jury in a criminal trial, among other guarantees. The Seventh Amendment guarantees a trial by jury in federal civil cases for disputes over $20. Why were the Founders so adamant about jury trials as opposed to a single judge? What is the difference between a civil or common law trial and a criminal trial? What are the exceptions to a trial by jury? And how does this apply and function in conjunction with state law? Alongside our student panel, we are delighted to welcome Eric J. Wise, partner at Alston & Bird, to help us understand the historical context, need and purpose of the Seventh Amendment.
-
A criminal trial has the potential to permanently alter the rest of one’s life. Punishments can range from fines to imprisonment to execution. This gives the government tremendous ability to impose penalties on its citizens. The Founders understood this and laid out criteria under which criminal trials would proceed. Under the Sixth Amendment, trials are speedy and fair, juries are impartial and Congress cannot take any of these rights away from the accused. We are delighted to have joining our all-star student panel Paul J. Larkin, Senior Research Fellow at the Heritage Foundation as he helps us understand the focus, meaning and purpose of the Sixth Amendment.
- Visa fler