Live at the National Constitution Center
Live constitutional conversations and debates featuring leading historians, journalists, scholars, and public officials hosted at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia and across America. To watch National Constitution Center Town Halls live, check out our schedule of upcoming programs at constitutioncenter.org/townhall. Register through Zoom to ask your constitutional questions in the Q&A or watch live on YouTube at YouTube.com/ConstitutionCenter.
1
The Constitution and the Courts at the 250th
Kevin Arlyck on The Nation at Sea, which tells a new story about the federal judiciary, and about the early United States itself.
34 min
2
Interpreting the Constitution in the Founding Era
A discussion of the Constitution and the Courts at the 250th anniversary of America’s founding, presented in partnership with the Federal Judicial Center.
56 min
3
The Ideas at the Heart of the Declaration and t...
David Blight, Robert P. George, and Annette Gordon-Reed explore the enduring ideas at the core of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution—including equality, liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and government by consent—and examine how those principles have been debated, interpreted, and contested over time.
65 min
4
Separation of Powers and the Rule of Law
Three retired federal judges discuss how the separations of powers, federalism, and the rule of law are critical elements of American constitutional democracy that need to be safeguarded.
61 min
5
Civic Story Hour with U.S. Supreme Court Justic...
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Neil M. Gorsuch, honorary co-chair of the National Constitution Center, and his co-author and former law clerk Janie Nitze join the Center to discuss their new children’s book, Heroes of 1776: The Story of the Declaration of Independence.
56 min
6
Jon Meacham on The Promise of America: Reflecti...
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian and National Constitution Center Semiquincentennial Scholar Jon Meacham joins the Center to discuss The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals
56 min
7
Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals: A Conversat...
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer (Ret.), honorary co-chair of the National Constitution Center, joins to discuss The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals, a new keepsake volume from the National Constitution Center.
58 min
8
Michael Auslin on National Treasure: How the De...
58 min
9
Sai Prakash on The Presidential Pardon: The Sho...
Sai Prakash joins to discuss his new book, The Presidential Pardon: The Short Clause with a Long, Troubled History.
59 min
10
Sarah Isgur on Last Branch Standing: A Potentia...
Sarah Isgur on Last Branch Standing: A Potentially Surprising, Occasionally Witty Journey Inside Today’s Supreme Court
59 min
11
Women and the American Revolution
Acclaimed historians Mary Beth Norton and Rosemarie Zagarri examine how women influenced the political, social, and intellectual currents of the American Revolution
57 min
12
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Women’s Suffrage, and t...
Ellen DuBois and Thomas Donnelly discuss the life, ideas, and legacy of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and the decades-long struggle for women's suffrage.
54 min
13
National Constitution Center Book Club: Jon Mea...
60 min
14
Thomas Paine and the 250th Anniversary of Commo...
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 Poetry, to discuss the revolutionary life, ideas, and legacy of Thomas Paine in celebration of the 250th anniversary of his famous pamphlet, Common Sense.
57 min
15
The Declaration of Independence and the Push fo...
60 min
16
The Lost Founder: James Wilson and the Forgotte...
57 min
17
William F. Buckley and the History of American ...
Authors Matthew Continetti and Sam Tanenhaus discuss Tanenhaus’s new book, Buckley: The Life and the Revolution That Changed America, and to trace American conservatism’s evolution from the Progressive Era, through the rise of William F. Buckley Jr., to today.
63 min
18
The Constitutional Legacy of Justice Robert Jac...
Scholars John Q. Barrett, Gerard Magliocca, and G. Edward White discuss the Justice’s influential concurrence in Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer, his approach to constitutional interpretation, and the lasting legacy he left on debates over presidential power.
57 min
19
Amending the Constitution and the Article V Pro...
Article V Project contributors and constitutional law experts Gerard Magliocca, Sanford Levinson, Michael Rappaport, and Stephen Sachs explore the origins, debates, and ongoing challenges surrounding Article V in this conversation about their new essays.
58 min
20
Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Still Matters
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Edward Larson discusses his newest book, Declaring Independence: Why 1776 Still Matters
59 min
21
Bonus: Twelve Titans Song Cycle
Featuring part two of the debut recital of the Pursuit of Happiness: Song Cycles by Jeffrey Rosen at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia
41 min
22
Bonus: The Golden Mean Song Cycle
Featuring part one of the debut recital of the Pursuit of Happiness: Song Cycles by Jeffrey Rosen at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia
38 min
23
Liberalism: Current Challenges and Modern Debates
53 min
24
Native Nations: From Ancient Cities to Today
In celebration of Native American Heritage Month, award-winning historian Kathleen DuVal discusses her new book, Native Nations: A Millennium in North America, tracing a thousand years of Native history—from the rise of ancient cities and the arrival of Europeans to today’s ongoing fights for sovereignty.
59 min
25
The Pursuit of Liberty: A Book Launch Event Wit...
66 min