We the People
National Constitution Center
300 episodes
A weekly show from the National Constitution Center hosted by Julie Silverbrook and Tom Donnelly where listeners can hear the best arguments on all sides of the constitutional issues at the center of American life.
Episodes page 1 of 6
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Can Article V Conventions Advance Constitutional Reform?
Article V of the U.S. Constitution establishes two methods for proposing constitutional amendments: a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress or a convention called by two-thirds of state legislatures. Although all…
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David O. Stewart on The Democracy We Must Keep
Historian David O. Stewart joins to discuss his latest book, The Democracy We Must Keep, which examines the foundational ideas in nine key founding-era documents that shaped America's constitutional democracy. Stewart…
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Previewing the Supreme Court’s 2026-2027 Term
The National Constitution Center previews the Supreme Court’s 2026-2027 term. Masha Hansford, partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell, Amy Howe, co-founder of SCOTUSblog, and Greg Stohr, Supreme Court reporter for Bloomberg…
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Frederick Douglass and Free Speech
Frederick Douglass is remembered as one of the most powerful orators in American history, a leading voice for abolition, and an extraordinary champion of equal rights. He was also one of the 19th century’s most…
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The Past, Present, and Future of the Second Amendment
In this episode, Joseph Blocher of Duke University School of Law and Clark Neily of the Cato Institute trace the ongoing debates over the Second Amendment. They analyze recent Supreme Court decisions on this key…
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William Magnuson on The Just and the Good: How Law Made the Western World
In this special Constitution Day episode, author William Magnuson discusses his latest book, The Just and the Good: How Law Made the Western World, which is a sweeping tour of the history of the law. He explores how…
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The State of Free Speech in 2026
Geoffrey Stone of the University of Chicago Law School and Eugene Volokh, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution and UCLA School of Law, discuss the First Amendment and the rapidly evolving speech landscape—from…
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Mary Sarah Bilder on the Origins of the Bill of Rights
In this episode, Mary Sarah Bilder, Founders Professor at Boston College Law School, explores the history of rights and liberties in America and the origins of the Bill of Rights. She traces how ideas about rights…
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Chatrie and the Future of the Fourth Amendment
In a recent decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that law enforcement’s use of a geofence warrant, which collected identity and location data from mobile phone users, violated the Fourth Amendment's protection against…
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Fergus Bordewich on Centennial and the Great Fair of 1876
In this episode, prize-winning author and historian Fergus M. Bordewich discusses his latest book, Centennial: The Great Fair of 1876 and the Invention of America’s Future, which explores the story of the nation’s…
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Rosemarie Zagarri on The Declaration’s Grievances
When Americans think about the Declaration of Independence, we tend to remember its most famous words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident,” and its promise of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” But to…
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What the 2025-2026 Supreme Court Term Revealed About the Roberts Court
The Supreme Court's latest term featured landmark decisions on executive power, birthright citizenship, voting rights, and more. But beyond the headlines, what did the term tell us about the Roberts Court itself? In…
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Free Speech in a Changing World
In this episode, Nadine Strossen, New York Law School professor emerita and former president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and Jacob Mchangama, the founder and executive director of The Future of Free…
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Does Article II of the Constitution Grant the President Power to Fire Anyone in the Executive Branch?
In this episode, legal scholars Michael Ramsey and Jed Shugerman the Supreme Court’s recent decisions in Trump v. Slaughter and Trump v. Cook, which address the president’s authority to remove members of the executive…
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Civil Discourse and the Supreme Court
In this episode, legal scholars Jonathan Adler, Greg Garre, Katherine Mims Crocker, and Howard Wasserman discuss the state of civil discourse inside the Supreme Court and in public debate about the Court. Julie…
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The Supreme Court and Executive Power
In this episode, legal scholars Gillian Metzger, Julian Mortenson, and Ilya Somin discuss the Supreme Court’s approach to executive power in recent decisions. Thomas Donnelly, lead scholar at the National Constitution…
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The Supreme Court Strikes Down President Trump’s Executive Order on Birthright Citizenship
In this episode, Richard Epstein and Martha Jones discuss the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Trump v. Barbara, which struck down President Trump’s Executive Order on birthright citizenship. At issue in the case…
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The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and the Constitution
In this episode, David Blight, Robert P. George, and Annette Gordon-Reed explore the enduring ideas at the core of the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution—including equality, liberty, the pursuit of…
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Eric Slauter on The Declaration’s Promises
The National Constitution Center recently published The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals (Simon & Schuster), a keepsake collection of essays bringing together leading thinkers from across…
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Carol Berkin on the Declaration’s lesser-known signers
If you ask Americans to name the signers of the Declaration of Independence, they will probably mention John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and John Adams. But what about the other 52 delegates from the…
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Justice Stephen Breyer on The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals
In this episode, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, retired, honorary co-chair of the National Constitution Center, joins to discuss The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals, a new keepsake…
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David Armitage on the Declaration’s Influence Around the World
The National Constitution Center recently published The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals (Simon & Schuster), a keepsake collection of essays bringing together leading thinkers from across…
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Michael Auslin on National Treasure
In this episode, Michael Auslin joins to discuss his new book, National Treasure: How the Declaration of Independence Made America, a sweeping and vivid history of the Declaration of Independence from its drafting to…
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Jonathan Adler and Stephen Vladeck Debate the Use of the “Shadow Docket” on the Roberts Court
In this episode, Jonathan Adler of William & Mary Law School and Stephen Vladeck of Georgetown University Law Center explore a part of the Supreme Court’s work that has drawn growing public attention: its emergency, or…
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Supreme Court Strikes Down Louisiana Congressional Map
On April 29, 2026, in Louisiana v. Callais, the Supreme Court invalidated a Louisiana congressional map, holding that racial considerations cannot predominate in the drawing of electoral districts. The ruling narrowed…
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Sarah Isgur on Last Branch Standing
Sarah Isgur joins for a conversation on her new book, Last Branch Standing: A Potentially Surprising, Occasionally Witty Journey Inside Today's Supreme Court. Drawing on history, law, and current debates, Sarah Isgur…
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Revolutionary State Constitutions
In this episode, scholars Nicholas Cole and Robert Williams examine how American constitutional democracy is rooted in the crafting of Revolutionary-era state constitutions. Beginning in May 1776, Americans gave…
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Women and the American Revolution
Acclaimed historians Mary Beth Norton, the Mary Donlon Alger Professor Emerita of American History at Cornell University, and Rosemarie Zagarri, distinguished university professor of history at George Mason University,…
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Emily Sneff on When the Declaration of Independence Was News
In this episode, historian Emily Sneff discusses her new book, When the Declaration of Independence Was News, which focuses on the nation’s founding document at the moment of its creation in 1776, before anyone knew…
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Madison's Vision and Revisions: Looking Back on the Constitution's Father
In this episode we’re sharing a live conversation that explores James Madison’s vision for the constitution with Mary Sarah Bilder of Boston College Law School, Robert P. George, of Princeton University, and Jonathan…
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Ellen DuBois on the Revolutionary Life of Elizabeth Cady Stanton
In celebration of Women’s History Month, award-winning historian Ellen DuBois, author of Elizabeth Cady Stanton: A Revolutionary Life, joins to discuss the life, ideas, and legacy of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the…
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The Revolutionary Lives of Catharine Macaulay and Mercy Otis Warren
As the Center marks the 250th anniversary of the nation, we’re taking a closer look at the people, events, and ideas that set the American Revolution in motion and ultimately led to the creation and adoption of the…
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What is the Constitutional Balance of War Powers Between Congress and the President?
On February 28, President Trump announced “major combat operations in Iran.” The operation, known as Epic Fury, has renewed a long-standing debate about the scope of presidential war powers and who decides when the…
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NCC Revisited: Women and the American Idea
In celebration of Women’s History month, we revisit a conversation that explores the life and legacy of women who have inspired Constitutional change throughout American history. Joining the conversation are Tomiko…
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Supreme Court Rules Trump’s Tariffs Unlawful Under IEEPA
On February 20, the Supreme Court ruled that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, known as IEEPA, does not authorize President Trump’s sweeping tariffs. In Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump, and the…
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Juan Williams on the Rise of America’s Second Civil Rights Movement
New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie joins award-winning journalist Juan Williams for a conversation on Williams’ latest book, New Prize for These Eyes: The Rise of America’s Second Civil Rights Movement, exploring…
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Thomas Paine and the 250th Anniversary of Common Sense
Gary Berton, the president of The Thomas Paine Historical Association, joins Scott Cleary, co-editor of New Directions in Thomas Paine Studies and author of The Field of Imagination: Thomas Paine and Eighteenth-Century…
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The Declaration of Independence and the Push for Racial Equality
In celebration of Black History Month, scholars Lucas Morel and Melvin Rogers join to discuss how African American leaders and citizens, such as Prince Hall, Frederick Douglass, Ida B. Wells, and Rev. Martin Luther…
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Best of 2025: Michael Lewis on Who Is Government?
In this Best of 2025-episode, Best-selling author Michael Lewis discusses his new book, Who Is Government?: The Untold Story of Public Service. As Americans’ distrust in the government continues to grow, Lewis’ book…
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The Lost Founder: James Wilson
This week, we explore the life of an influential and yet, often overlooked founder, James Wilson. Whose ideas and influence continue to shape current debates about popular sovereignty, constitutional structure, and…
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The Story of the U.S. Constitution: Past and Present
After more than 12 years of distinguished service as President and Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Rosen has transitioned to the role of CEO Emeritus, enabling him to devote his full time and energy to his scholarship…
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Kathleen DuVal on Native Nations
In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, award-winning historian Kathleen DuVal discusses her new book, Native Nations: A Millennium in North America, which traces a thousand years of Native history—from the…
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William F. Buckley and the Intellectual History of American Conservatism
Matthew Continetti, author of The Right: The Hundred-Year War for American Conservatism, joins prize-winning biographer Sam Tanenhaus to discuss Tanenhaus’s new book, Buckley: The Life and the Revolution That Changed…
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The Constitutional Legacy of Justice Robert Jackson
John Q. Barrett, discoverer and editor of Robert H. Jackson's acclaimed book That Man: An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt and writer of the popular blog The Jackson List, joins author and constitutional…
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Ed Larson on Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Matters
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Edward Larson discusses his newest book, Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Still Matters, which traces the idea of American independence in one pivotal year—1776—and its continued…
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Can President Trump Fire a Federal Trade Commissioner Without Cause?
In this episode, Thomas Berry of the Cato Institute and Jed Shugerman of the Boston University School of Law join the recap the oral arguments from Trump v. Slaughter and debate whether the statutory removal…
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Amending the Constitution and the Article V Project
In this episode, the National Constitution Center launches our Article V Project, a new initiative examining the founders’ vision for Article V and an historical look at the use of the Article V process from 1789 to…
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From Pursuit: Silence in Order to Listen
In our 12-part podcast series, Pursuit: The Founders’ Guide to Happiness, Jeffrey Rosen explores the founders’ lives with the historians who know them best and filmmaker Ken Burns shares his daily practice of…
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Eric Foner on Our Fragile Freedoms
In this episode, Pulitzer Prize–winning historian Eric Foner joins to discuss his book, Our Fragile Freedoms, a new collection of essays exploring a range of topics, including debates over slavery and antislavery, the…
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Walter Isaacson on the Greatest Sentence Ever Written
In this episode, best-selling biographer Walter Isaacson joins to discuss his new book, The Greatest Sentence Ever Written, with Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center. As we approach the…
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