if we start to say it now has become obsolete that s when we get in trouble. it is the center point of our government and foundation and it should be treated as such. what you see now is people trying to say, it s so outdated, it s so old we don t really need to do it any more, we don t need to use it any more or put it in context because the world has changed so much. i think they knew the world was changing, they th-r changing the world when they wrote it. shannon: the tea party, this has been at the center of a lot of their arguments the last year or two as that party and movement has come together. they say it s time for us to return to it. sally are you one of those who thinks the tea party is exploiting or misusing the constitution in some way. i don t think we ever left the constitution. i m grateful for the tea party folks that remind us about the founding documents that we need to celebrate more. let s be clear. thankfully again the founders created our great nation but they
bringing the subject up, because the constitution is a living document, it is not dead. some people are trying to purpb it into this trivial dead, old school piece of information or history that we should, you know, look at and say, oh, that was nice in the day. it s still real today and it should be to everyone in washington d.c. shannon: sally, how much does this debate over the document and what it does arrest doesn t mean, how much does it point to the importance of the appointment of judges especially to something like the supreme court. first of all, i m sorry ben is so upset. i actually don t know anyone on either side of the partisan aisle who believes that the constitution is a dead and old and obsolete document. anyone that criticizes the tea party says they take it too literally. that s the side i m talking about. wait a second, ben. taking a document too literally as in reading it in 2011 as though it was still the 18th century is different than saying it s an obsolet
line or will. reporter: in the battle of wills between man and beast this group of guys would triumph. the captain has been fishing for more than 30 years he calls this a fish of a lifetime. shannon: when you have a big story like that it s nice to have a video to back up the fish tale. the bankers were supposed to be our guests today. they canceled. maybe they want fishing. the worst flood in 50 years swamping a north dakota town. those are the sirens wailing across the town of minot, the whole city forced to evacuate. a live report coming up. time magazine this week asks if the constitution still matters. should we be able to make it up as we go along? who interprets it? that debate you don t want to miss it, is next. in order to form a more
in it managing editor rick stingle wondering why the tea party folks are in such a fuss over what maybe america s most important document, the constitution. he wrote if the constitution is to limit the federal government it sure doesn t say so. a fair & balanced debate about what it case. sally cone founder of movement vision. and ben ferguson. i have to throw out the first statement we have about this not limiting the federal government. certainly there are checks and balances built in. there are limits on the executive branch. what do you make of where we are in 2011 with that constitution drafted back in 1787. the constitution is alive and well and thank goodness. but also thank goodness that it s a living, breathing document. i mean look over two centuries ago the founders, who in their infinite wisdom created a nation, created a government also knew, they were smart
end. for founders who owned slaves, who didn t believe that african-americans should be people, didn t believe that women should vote, believe women should be property of their husbands. thank goodness as a nation we followed their advice and let that document evolved. it doesn t mean we get rid of it, but it means we evolve. shannon: ben, of course we ve had the amending process that has handled a number of the issues and things that people have viewed as flaws or things that were wrong with the original intent of the constitution. so, if it s been amended does that mean it s imperfect? well, i don t think it s per se imperfect. i think there is one thing to realize that when society changes and grows, i mean look how big america is compared to when they wrote it that yes, sometimes there needs to be add ons. what worries me the most is when people try to act like the document has become somehow, you know, obsolete, or it s somehow old news, or it somehow really doesn t apply. it do