1.3M
Downloads
197
Episodes
Professor Akhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University and one of the nation's leading authorities on the Constitution, offers weekly in-depth discussions on the most urgent and fascinating constitutional issues of our day. He is joined by co-host Andy Lipka and guests drawn from other top experts including Bob Woodward, Nina Totenberg, Neal Katyal, Lawrence Lessig, Michael Gerhardt, and many more.
Episodes
3 days ago
3 days ago
The Supreme Court has, through its recent follies, managed to bring the status of ex-presidents into the spotlight. How appropriate, then, that perhaps America’s greatest ex-president reaches a milestone this past week: Happy Birthday, President Carter. The ex-presidents, it turns out, have told a myriad of stories through the centuries. America largely avoided succession crises until recently, but as far back as Alexander Hamilton, the potential for mischief was seen and feared. Professor Amar, one of the few who have studied ex-presidents in any detail, treats us to a master class in this unusual but suddenly vital group of Americans. CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com.
Tuesday Oct 01, 2024
The Return of the Enemies List
Tuesday Oct 01, 2024
Tuesday Oct 01, 2024
Donald Trump continues to spout inflammatory rhetoric; he has compounded his talk of being “a dictator on day one” with an intention to conduct a “purge” with extreme violence allowed, again allegedly for one day. All this makes one expect that he will not back off his first-term tendency to take an authoritarian posture regarding the Justice Department. The New York Times ran an article presenting new and thorough look at Trump and the Dept in his prior term, and we analyze. We also take more of your election-related constitutional questions. CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com.
Tuesday Sep 24, 2024
The Blue Dot
Tuesday Sep 24, 2024
Tuesday Sep 24, 2024
Nebraska is no flyover state; its unusual electoral vote structure puts Omaha’s one electoral vote up for grabs - both as a contest for votes, and a legislative battle to possibly restructure Nebraska’s election law. We tell an originalist story form the early Republic that surprisingly echoes some of the issues in today’s situation. Meanwhile, other types of blue dots, and how the right to travel and to reside where one wishes can play a role in the election. We also try to proactively refute the inevitable accusations to come from predictable sources on these matters. CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.
Wednesday Sep 11, 2024
The Devil You Know
Wednesday Sep 11, 2024
Wednesday Sep 11, 2024
The New York Times looks at the Constitution as an allegedly anti-democratic, divisive, secession-promoting document. They bring authority to bolster their case in the person of the Dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law, Erwin Chemerinsky. We take a close look at this article and the arguments it employs. This takes us to the center of the Constitution’s purposes, of course to questions of originalism, as well as an analysis of what sort of democracy the Constitution protects, and what sort it might protect against. CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
Your Turn
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
Tuesday Sep 03, 2024
It’s time for your questions, and having a great audience means there are so many fascinating directions to go. A Canadian listener tells of how a non-originalist purpose-oriented approach to constitutional law works for them - why not in the US? We go in a different direction when we consider the wisdom of increasing the size of the House of Representatives. Still another asks about whether the presidential immunity decision has undermined some fundamental aspects of criminal law, not to mention one of the Court’s greatest moments - the Nixon tapes case. Keep those questions coming! CLE credit is available for lawyers and judges from podcast.njsba.com.
Tuesday Aug 27, 2024
The Kennedy Shame and Schumer's Folly - Special Guest Ruth Marcus
Tuesday Aug 27, 2024
Tuesday Aug 27, 2024
RFK Jr. has withdrawn from the race and endorsed Trump. This meeting of an estranged Kennedy and an indicted Trump, is laced not only with strangeness but also constitutional themes, as we explore. Meanwhile, backlash after the Trump immunity opinion continues, and Senate Majority Leader Schumer has introduced legislation in response. The great Washington Post columnist, Ruth Marcus, returns to our podcast to comment on this legislation and the many serious implications it would have if adopted, as well as the issues it raises for consideration even if it fails, as it seems likely to do. CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com
Wednesday Aug 21, 2024
Circuit of Shame
Wednesday Aug 21, 2024
Wednesday Aug 21, 2024
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has been overruled by the Supreme Court more often, and more forcefully, than any other circuit during the past term. Why? What are the consequences for the judges of the Fifth Circuit, if any? Is this a problem for our judicial system, and if so, are there any remedies available? Listeners to Amarica’s Constitution will not be surprised to learn that Professor Amar has some ideas on this topic. He also grounds the problems and the solutions in history and structure, and lest one think this is a partisan attack on a conservative court, he tells of his past criticism of the then-ultra-liberal ninth circuit for analogous behavior.
Tuesday Aug 13, 2024
Term Limits Made Workable
Tuesday Aug 13, 2024
Tuesday Aug 13, 2024
Court reform is in the air. Having presented the problems with the 18 year term proposals before the House and Senate, Professor Amar’s plan deserves its own scrutiny. We therefore present the plan in detail, explaining the problems that it attempts to solve, the principles it attempts to uphold, and the criticisms it might attract. Since it is a proposal and not yet a statute, it is subject to modification and hopefully improvement, so we invite the audience to chime in with your own critiques and suggestions. Let’s keep the conversation going. CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com.
Wednesday Aug 07, 2024
How To Get To 18 Years
Wednesday Aug 07, 2024
Wednesday Aug 07, 2024
The 2021 Biden Commission on the Court has now led - with a big “assistance” from the Court itself - to President Biden’s own plan for Court reform. It is sketchy in many ways, but is entirely consistent with Professor Amar’s long-held views on 18 year active terms for Supreme Court justices, though the President’s proposal lacks the detail of that plan. This is unsurprising in a way since Prof. Amar testified before that Commission. There are other related plans in proposed statutes that lie in committees of the House and Senate. We consider the features of all, the flaws we have diagnosed, and we also have some commentary on some other aspects of the President’s proposals, including a possible constitutional amendment. Lots to consider this week! CLE credit is available for judges and lawyers from podcast.njsba.com.
Tuesday Jul 30, 2024
Stepping Aside and Its Implications
Tuesday Jul 30, 2024
Tuesday Jul 30, 2024
President Biden has stepped aside as a candidate, and as promised, we look at what’s next from a variety of points of view. Some Republicans, notably the Speaker, are claiming that the President should actually resign or step back under the 25th amendment. What would this mean? Meanwhile, we have a lot more in this early episode, including a reader’s question on Barack Obama; another on Edmund Burke; a preview of an amazing EverScholar program; a preview of Biden’s Supreme Court proposed reform; and more. CLE credit is available from podcast.njsba.com.