Is a tree into his next on booktv is a professor of law and Political Science at Yale University takes a look at the way geography impact in the way state constitutions have been shaped. [inaudible conversations] [applause] ladies and gentlemen welcome to the National Constitution center. I am president of this wonderful institution which has one or two of you may be aware is the only institution in America Charter by corporis to disseminate information about the u. S. Constitution on a nonpartisan basis. Beautiful. You can all sing along to our Glorious Mission statement and weve now encapsulated this to say that this is the only place in america in these polarized times are people of different perspectives can come together to learn about celebrate and debate the greatest vision of human freedom up or invest it, the u. S. Constitution. [applause] as you know those of you who have been here before, if they are an incredibly great excitement in constitutional heaven that you are in for a wheelchair he and im as well. I have a huge honor and pleasure of welcoming back to the stage not only and our dear friend and scholarly advised there akhil train for but my first constitutional law professor. I have to tell you that my passion for constitutional debate and love for educating the doctor and was kindled by this great amendment. Now many years ago if he is just a model a scholar, someone whose passion for making that text of the constitution access to both inspires and a shaped everything we try to do here at the National Constitution center and he has done more to educate the importance of taking the tech seriously than any other scholar in america appeared such a pleasure to welcome him. Please give him a round of applause. [applause] we are going to jump right in a moment to the superb new book did have a couple of talks i have to share with you. This is a members only event and is a sign of the irresistible benefits of membership in the National Constitution center which anyone can join by going to the website and you get to come to events like this and have a beautiful brochure of upcoming members including meet the ceo breakfast. Can you imagine anything more exciting than that on may 28 a special members only two or other upcoming exhibit speaking out for the constitution at the beginning of june and the only debit in america with both sides of the constitutional debate and it will have been weeks before the Supreme Court hands down its historic decisions in the Marriage Equality cases just last week. A members only events we have a panoply of spectacular events coming this spring. Our traveling town hall events cosponsored by the Federalist Society are taking off next week and we will be in boston on may 12th debating whether Citizens United case was correctly decided. We think these great debates uniting the two leading groups in the country have potential to transform constitutional discourse like the Lincoln Douglas debates did 100 years ago. Theres so much else coming on. Please check out the website for more to come. I Authority Given akhil ive told you how meaningful it is to have them at the National Constitution center. Hes a sterling professor of law and Political Science at yale. He joined the faculty of el in 1985. A small group in 88 and you were three years in the teaching and basically a year old josh read the youngest teacher of radio . [inaudible] i am going to read the title ii these books because i want each of you who love the constitution wants to learn more about it too really because theres no better introduction for students of all ages and superb books than the constitution and criminal procedure, bill of rights creation and reconstruction. Americas constitution a biography of the unwritten constitution and the principles we live by so i start by recommending americas constitution of the place to begin in go read all of his other books. I know you will want to read this one actually talk about it tonight because this book the law of the land a grand tour of our Constitutional Republic cases which are so surprising and innovative than everything akhil does and that is to focus on the relationship between the constitution. Who wouldve thought before reading mass dazzling book that geography was so essential in the thinking of the justices who decided the most important cases in history as well as people like lincoln who shaped his meaning. I want to jump right in. You talk about secession. Imagine a sphere i just started law school two weeks and then this great man, this great teacher took two hours in your office after class, late at night 7 00. The dust was settling. The question was once the session unconstitutional in akhil insisted it was subtle at the time of the framing that we the people of the United States rather than weed the individual states were sovereign and secession was unconstitutional starting with the framing is self and i was the absurd overconfidence only a firstyear law student could have insisted it took the civil war to settle the question and it was open at the time and whether this Brilliant Chapter on link any on link and you say on link any statement can basically believe we did people of the United States at the time of ratification although i think you overstated the case to some degree. Tell us about lincoln and secession. Great to be with you all. Thanks for your kind words for lincoln is my hero and should be our viewers. With that in his house. The framers house built here in philadelphia was proverbially divided again since ralph. It fell because of slavery. Recall that a civil war in mr. Lincoln rebuilt on an antislavery foundation so the first chapter of the book begins with him and his vision which is very much in illinois where we all live in the land and i picked the season to launch the book presents the 150th anniversary of lincolns passing, and of the civil war. I want to commend the center for a second time and project all about putting lincoln up there alongside washington. We focus on the founding generation but we live as i said in lincolns house in the two most important constitutional decisions as their were not made by a judge. They were made by linking to resist unilateral profession. If he hadnt. , who would we be . Who would we be if your parents have never met in the decision to free the slaves which allayed of course constitutionally to a 13th amendment and 14th and 15th in the second founding a new earth of freedom. Lincoln writes i say yes. The title of the book the law of the land is taken from the supremacy of the constitution. The constitution describes itself as a short document and refers to itself on a bunch of passages. I have an earlier version of the National Constitution center documents. So this constitution is the supreme law of the land of the land notwithstanding anything in any state constitution to the contrary. What part of that do you not get comes out carolina . I have kids and sometimes i look at them and my wife and say what part of no did you not understand here . If you dont like it individually you can leave. You cant take the land with you. The founders understood that as the task. Its one historical fact and not give you more about lincoln. Lincoln channeled the framers in a powerful way from a midwestern point of view. He had a whole year and which the constitutionalist deliberated we the people did ordain and establish this constitution, put it to a vote. Ordinary farmers brought it up and down the continent they had to decide whether they were for or against it. Is sweet spirited bunch of places. New hampshire virginia, very close and nowhere ive are in this whole year and a support of the constitution say give it a try if you dont like it you can leave, moneyback guaranteed. What powerful argument if there were money back dont you think they wouldve said so. They say the union must be soluble in the text they talk about a more Perfect Union modeled on the union of scotland and in languages called the law of the land. Any state who goes against that, even if backed by state governor treason under the constitution why did they do it and what does lincoln add to that. So lincoln basically is from the midwest and he understands the entire region from the appellations through the rockies drained through the Mississippi River and you can get your goods to market without going down the mississippi. You cant let a foreign power control new orleans. Would have a choke hold on everyone in the middle of america. There is no defensible border here between illinois and the states below for the culture of corn land of corn meets the land of cotton. There isnt some National Defense and border and we cant allow this to fall into the hands of a foreign power. Why are Americans Free . The founders understood this and lincoln understood it. There is no Standing Army in peacetime for the first time in 50 years. You have a hostile regime over the southern part of the United States and now you have two armies facing each other. They will fight over who will get the last because theres rules and lincoln says we cant allow it. You can leave but you cant take the land with you. All americans spend their blood and treasure defending fort sumter in other places. Those guns were meant to point out against our enemies and you cant let a local population unilaterally swivel around to the rest of our bellies. I give you a little bit about geography but why would lincoln especially understand that . Shes from he thinks that the union helped create the state, if you are robert e. Lee virginia has been up and running from the 1620s 150 years old by the time the declaration of independence comes along. Using virginia created the union. If youre Abraham Lincoln you are born in kentucky and your father from virginia and grandfather from pennsylvania and before that from new england although youre not quite sure which day. You move from indiana and illinois. Indiana is a territory about to become the state. The union is giving birth to new state in the midwest and the old northwest. Like illinois and indiana. Without when you move to indiana it not a state yet. You are an american. Not just in illinois person or kentucky person. One idea he has what were the policies. Good land surveys they use these kentucky because you are farming the land to someone else claims title ii it because of virginias lamb also nice that then you are just swatting on it and you can play and your claim unless you go hundreds of miles away and hire a lawyer in virginia. The good federal lands are bad commitment to Public Education and infrastructure and the landgrant to connect america east to west with the transcontinental railroads as well as north to south. At the very illinois centered view of the world. Hes very much a product of the midwest and the back bone of the union army in the civil war comes from the old northwest. Ohio, sherman illinois. Finally, this land is free soil. It is free soil because of the northwest ordinance adopted even before the constitution comes into existence. The language of the northwest ordinance prohibiting slaves in the north and west of the ohio river is going to become word for word the language of the 13th amendment, which lincoln signed into law and isnt yet ratified. He is the moses of our people given to him to see the Promised Land but not quite to enter it. The signature is a necessary, but he takes the vision in utc in the movie lincoln, he ultimately gets that into the constitution. Its a very midwestern view of the world. That is powerful and well argued. A 27 years later and i cant let the argument go. 27 years after her first conversation. There was another one from James Madison and as i try to argue unsuccessfully back he talks about being the entire United States and you acknowledge we have more state centric. Is it possible there is who is sovereign. James wilson argues for the National Sovereignty that did madison take lincoln to perfect in the civil war to settle the question. Federalism is one of the big issues of American History and this book tries to take state seriously read them seriously. It argues it is a vast and diverse republican things to look different in california than they look in kansas or kentucky. And they are genuinely close questions in american federalism. It just turns out happily for a confirming kims memory that secession is that one of those close questions. James madison never, ever wavered on secession. He always thought it was unconstitutional. Here is a letter that he wrote to the new York Ratifying Convention while the eyes of the world were on new york. Let me set the stage. 10 states have said yes. It will go into effect in july 1788. 10 states have said yes that new york hasnt. We dont know which way its going to go. At the end of the day of 32 mack 27. Strictly speaking that would change the outcome because it would be 2928 and the presiding officer is supposed to the constitution will have the time making though, making it 2929 and the resolution fails. Hamilton doesnt know if he has the votes yet. Hes trying to get it through. The antisedulously heres the deal you propose. We say yes on the condition that there be a bill of rights. Maybe i should go for this deal because its mere extension of the constitution as a practical matter will fail. How will work without the hudson river and the ports in new york city will be like east and west pakistan 250 years later. So is interested in taking the deal. How about the compromise. No you cant. He writes a letter saying in the word and the eyes of the world are focused on new york because who knows whether theyll say yes or not. The ratification must be in total and forever. That is how the author states ratified the constitution and how new york must do it. All deals are final and once you are in you are in and as i said, no one this entire year ever since otherwise. Inc. About it. If the people are wavering, if there were a money back guarantee wouldnt you say so . Instead at the risk of losing everything they insist that all sales are final. Happily for us, lincoln was on rocksolid ground and emphasizing words of the supremacy clause and the larger geostrategic spirit. You dont want basically people at any moment being able to leave the union and cut a deal to break through the spanish and the french and attack the rest of us. He said a couple of things that were little too exuberant. Even though he is my hero out all you where he went further than he had to. The bottom line most important constitutional decision ever made in america and he got it right. I have to confess after all this time when i read page 18 about each state ratification i can see you were right all along. To listen. It is because you and folks like you year after year rightfully push back. When you teach at a place like el you have great students and they push back and force you to refine the argument and make it better. Thank you for the pushback. Thank you for inviting us. The most exciting thing is he just invited your students to push hard and challenge you and not the argument and i was the most intellectually exciting experience. Its now time to talk about hugo black. You also cannot my great admiration so much so that i named one of my sons hugo because hugo black is a hero and he became nine. As you note in the shop, that is an unfashionable view. Hugo black was dismissed as a selftaught bumpkin by herbert snobs for all these years. There is black textualism and his great contribution to incorporating the bill of rights the First Amendment jurisprudence and they may have been a biblical action. Tell us about the geography. I believe the greatest constitutional failure of the last 10 to 15 years was this relatively unlettered fellow from illinois from the midwest. Abe lincoln had less than a year formal education in his life. It is unfair to call him because hes amazingly selftaught because he would go to debate and read works and reread them and he had a steel trap mind that he was basically underestimated and dismissed in his lifetime by all these folks that had fancy educational use goes spirit and the story interestingly recurs in the next century. I begin with lincoln in chapter two that the greatest jurist of the 20th century was picked from the stakes from alabama who didnt go to harvard or yield. Continued the Standard Law School for three years. Basically went to high school, did a year or two of college and off to a nonstandard two years of education at the university of alabama. A former klansman from alabama is the guy who does more to retain lincolns vision. What we call the warren court is actually the intellectual brainchild. This guy you might not have heard of went to harvard, William Brennan and brandeis who went to harvard. In telling this story. Or maybe the six themes of the warren court and none of them was in place in 1936 the year before hugo black as fdrs first appointee. Hugo black is on the court as fdrs first appointee. Mal apportionment and 45 of the state. One person one vote. Here is jim crow apartheid over much of america. The bill of rights doesnt apply against the states that only the federal government. Think about the important bill of rights cases. Although once you think of not the federal government. Theres organized prayer recitation of public prayer in the public school. Freedom of speech has almost never been protected by the Supreme Court and criminal defense have a few constitutional rights. Thats the world of 1936. Almost every one of those things is hugo black saying even before oral warren joins the board in 1953 before dobrynin comes on the court and later in the 50s before he joins the court. Hes the guy that gives one person one vote, broad protection of free speech applying the bill of rights and incorporating it against the states. Getting rid of prayer in the Public Schools and religious equality. You want with everyone else issued around versus word of education but hes the one deep southerner that is were criticized by Social Circle than anyone else. Would be insane is unpopular. The rights of the criminal defense in gideon versus wainwright. He writes that although hes laid the table in 1942. So the story in that chapter is how people down south come from a fundamentalist church. They read their bible and they teach on sunday school and its a completely different vision and Clarence Thomas also from the deep south, a tradition of taking the tags very very seriously, paying attention to history and treating it as american scripture in a way. That is maybe not very sophisticated or highfalutin but very deeply felt by an American Patriot from the south land, hugo black. Im in that tradition. Folks at harvard mocked that. They were little more sophisticated about all of this. Hugo black understood what lincoln was trying to do and he understood having grown up in the south and the promises that got put into the constitution the second founding in the southland he really felt as a failure of the reconstruction vision and did more to retain lincolns vision than anyone in American History has been these deep southerner. A former klansman who deep in his heart did not believe in religious intolerance for racial bigotry. He was a very great man. Some of you might not know his story, the one i tried to tell. Just the harborside was reciprocated as robertson is concerned the justices come from an ugly background paired some of them went to yale. But you discuss in your conclusion the odd plan at all the attorney justices in theirs just background comes from new york city and even when the focus where they were raised, the geographic puzzle remains. Three northeast corridor cities plus San Francisco. If you cant Vice President as welcome people running for the vice presidency as well as the presidency the last time we had an election in which one of the top before running for president in the two people running for Vice President didnt go to either harvard or yale or both, 1968. Youre living in a world where unlike the world that give you hugo black or abe lincoln, our leadership have today travels through a very very narrow gate called the ivy league. William buckley said he would rather be governed by the first 10 names in the phonebook and the faculty at harvard. Should we be concerned about this . How does this intersect with your thesis . I think we should be concerned. This is good for me that they all go to harvard and Yale Law School got three former students who are senators. Mike Bennett Chris coons, cory booker. I have students who were present at the National Constitution. Good for me. Its not good for the country. Its not good for the country because i think its too narrow a pathway. And i believe in diversity. I believe in geographic diversity. Every part of the country is something to contribute. I believe in for similar reasons that, i hate to admit it but it turns out there are more than two good schools in america. So i do actually find it too narrow a pathway. But you did say that justices are redeemed or at least geography resurrects itself by the fact most were raised near port cities. I do think, there are some ways of slicing it geographically. Heres one way. Its north against south and the same states that voted for lincoln basically in 1860 voted for another tall skinny constitutional lawyer from illinois who gave a speech right here about race right here on this stage. The same states that voted against lincoln in 1860 voted against that tall skinny constitutional or from illinois in 20082012. Thats north south. The fascinating thing is the parties have flipped. The democrats have become lincolns geographic coalition and the republicans have become a part of the confederacy. You could do it a different way. You could slice up within states and look at kos versus noncoastal regions. In pennsylvania as you know its philadelphia and pittsburgh connected by very different demographic. If you look at president ial elections by county you will see basically, this is a blue america. We start in d. C. A very thin strip of blue all the way up the atlantic seacoast around maine the Saint Lawrence seaway, down through the great lakes, northern rim of ohio and around michigan and minnesota, down the Mississippi River the west coast, the tp tip of miami where a bunch of new yorkers have retired to and new jersey. A big indian reservations where no one lives and eight College Towns in the middle of america like boulder colorado, and atlanta, georgia. Thats blue america. Everything else is read. Its interesting. People who voted for the constitution tended to be the people, for people to vote against the constitution tended to be people in the hinterland. I claim that ports like the great port city of philadelphia are connected to the world, places of commerce and trade. They are often centers of education and philanthropy. People and peoples intermingle. California where i grew up in north meets south and east meets west. So its philadelphia. Philadelphia was always a more mixed place and New York New York city than other folks. They are law towns because law is about commerce and trade and clashes of culture. So philadelphia has lots of lawyers and so is d. C. And somewhat cisco and boston. Thats where the justices today interestingly enough come from. That wasnt always true. Lets take dred scott which lincoln runs against. They were part free soil laws are unconstitutional. Northwest ordinance is some unconstitutional or the mr. Akaka ms. Why would they Say Something that preposterous . On the drones got court five of the nine justices dred scott that region had a third of the repopulation in that five of the justices. That Supreme Court was not abortion in the southern direction. One of the reasons it was is because the justices road circuit back then. The south, you have to abortion that justices based in part on the roads they would have to ride and the swamps they would have to cross. Because the south had crummy roads and bad infrastructure they had sort of smaller districts because it just took longer to get from point a to point b. What that meant is that the south had more than its fair share of justices which meant that the Dred Scott Court was really tilted towards the south. Today we dont have circuit writing anymore so thats not may be demographic seats come the women succeed or the jewish seat or the africanamerican seat. But interestingly most of our justices come from coastal places and they went to basically ivy league schools. And interesting geographic fact. Californias next. Anthony kennedy and the idea of equality. First of all my geography is terrible. Sacrament is not on its not too far from the bay area. What i admit is you were from manhattan growing up im from the only borough that is not represent on the Supreme Court im from the Upper East Side and i feel disenfranchised. Staten island also. You think of newark as extension of come you might even think of new haven as part of the basin of new york as the metronorth goes all the way to the north and you have an imperialistic view of greater cost than on the bay area kid so i think San Francisco and berkeley and oakland and san jose and the peninsula. And yes our sphere of influence, extends all the way to basically sacramental. As this bay area person i do have but tony kennedy rose grows up in sacramento. He goes to school, undergrad at stanford before it goes to harvard law school. On the bench he sits in court that meets in San Francisco, the ninth Circuit Court of appeals. And my claim is two or threefold. One, that he is a lincoln republican ngc still the influence not so many of them because Todays Republican Party become the party of the confederacy. There are a few lincoln republicans were on the court John Paul Stevens from chicago, david souter from New Hampshire Harry Blackmun from minnesota. Kennedy isnt that they can be so on the court but all the rockefeller republicans from our childhood got pushed out of the party. Arlen specter from pennsylvania Jim Jefferies from vermont, Lincoln Chaffee from rhode island. That canada pushed out of the 40. Whose chief justice honey, governor of sacramento is growing up . This lincoln republican named earl warren. So kennedy is going up in warrens shadow. Warren visits the kennedy household im obligations. Kennedy is a page in the california legislature. Kennedy as a little bit Ronald Reagan but also all of it earl warren. Halfway between Northern California republican and he today, thinking about brown v. Board of education which is an an earl warren case in loving v. Virginia, he talked about both of them last week in samesex marriage, and isnt it, you know, its not a coincidence i believe that the one republican on the court who most gets it on gayrights comes from Northern California where we did it on alternative lifestyles. And so there are the four liberals meaning . Meaning understanding equality, equality and dignity of our friends who happen to be frankly born gay. And kennedy feels that i think in a way thats very authentic. Hehe grows up at highgrowth basically just down the road. Walnut creek isnt quite berkeley San Francisco. Its halfway between San Francisco thats where i grew up in San Francisco. A second one in 2003 lawrence v. Texas which a Supreme Court said states cant prohibit consensual sexual relations between consenting adults in private. And gay or straight. And kennedy writes for the court in that case. Also 63 i believe. And then two years ago in a case called windsor the court said the federal government has to respect samesex marriages that are legal in states defense of marriage act is unconstitutional. Anthony kennedy writes that one. In all of these Justice Scalia the sins, very angry sharper dissent. Justice scalia and justice cherry are both appointed by Ronald Reagan. They are uploaded within two years of each other. They both happen to grown up in the Catholic Church but actually represent i think rather different visions. So having read windsor, having read romer, having read lawrence v. Texas i think that it wouldnt be shocking for me if Justice Kennedy wrote the fourth in the series, just as earl warren wrote both brown v. Board of education ending apartheid in education in 1954, and wrote loving v. Virginia in 1967 ending apartheid in marriage. Those were 13 years apart and to great warren court bookings. Liberal republican in the lincoln republican tradition from sacramento. If you heard oral argument last week kennedy mentioned those two cases. He said there are about a dozen years apart, about how long its been since weve had samesex marriage in the United States. So it was openly musing about these two cases and the timing between them come and in effect saying, you know, because we call it the Roberts Court but in everything except the Obamacare Decision really the Big Decisions have early the swing justice has been kennedy. We are living in kennedys world. I think its a pretty attractive vision. I Defense Budget is decisions including Citizens United. The chapter is called anthony cupid and the ideal of equality and the first part of the chapter was actually based on a lecture i gave in sacramento in kennedys on her 20 years ago and i tried to updated and say heres what he has done since. I think its the same person. And who knows what he will do this season but stay tuned. I want to ask you you would say justice communities decision on the mccutcheons case we are kind of disagree. With so much else to get through. There are two superb chaps on the Fourth Amendment and the first which is one of my favorites is about massachusetts massachusetts, to making chief Justice Roberts and recent unanimous decision of cell phones. He quoted james otis famous speech in massachusetts on the risk of assistance and john adams said did at that moment the childs independence was born. But you say adams was wrong and he was influenced by the fact he was in massachusetts but, in fact, it was another series of cases that happened just a bit later, the wilkes case in london there really animated the framers. Tell us about that case and why that so in 1761 there is an episode that unfolds called the great colonial lawyer james otis argued. John adams is in the room and 50 years later says thats when the childhood independence is born but no one at the time noticed any of it adams doesnt like this. 50 years later it doesnt make any of the newspapers. The declaration of independence doesnt talk about the writs of assistance. Drafted right across the street you would think it was a big deal. The declaration wouldve mentioned it. The Fourth Amendment doesnt speak of rates but affords. I dont think it was actually particularly influential at the time. So why did adams say that . Adams body was the center of all things and of course, yesterday in the room and the real thing happened and all the benefit jefferson wasnt there and it wasnt virginia and it was massachusetts at first and he was in from the beginning and these virginians are johnny come lately. The evidence doesnt support because what else is saying that in real time. Adams as a harvard guy so then the first Supreme Court case that talks about rates of assistance as being important was actually from 1886 and sites to another harvard guy, named justice greg was on the massachusetts Supreme Court and wrote a book about the writs of assistance. He thinks its important. Who is grace law clerk . Louis brandeis also went to harvard and he says the writs of assistance were a big deal. It was his protege . Isif this other harvard guide named frankfort. Its all about the writs of assistance. So its a total harvard that was all about massachusetts and massachusetts was first. I love massachusetts. I did my clerkship. The center of all things the hub of the american revolution, the hub of the medical profession. The hub of the universe. Its not quite so. It turns out not to matter that much because of the court basically has gotten it right. Heres where it was a big deal. A fellow named john wilkes, as in wilkesbarre pennsylvania. Theres not otis pennsylvania you know . Wilkesbarre, Wilkes County georgia. Human thing from the map. John wilkes booth, was named for john wilkes. Ashley wilkes gone with the wind is an illusion. The judge in the case these famous english cases that everyone in america does Pay Attention to come 176364 after the august the. And the judge named camden as in eight blocks from here came to new jersey. Camden, maine. Our friends in baltimore, the orioles play in camden yard. So camden is a very big deal. Wilks is a big deal and you can see on a map. Otis not so much. And the last chapter is actually the story of camden. Youve heard about the great william penn and the great city of philadelphia. And i say there is this little Rodney Dangerfield state across the river called new jersey and his little place called camden but they have a story to tell. Lord camden was a great man. He was the earl warren of this epic he believed in american independence that he believed in liberty and i tried to tell the story about how if you Pay Attention to what camden said, it has really interesting implications for how we can protect Fourth Amendment writes in america today. Gosh, you see how this great, just uncovering these stories can bring a paradigm cases behind the constitution to life. The our phenomenal questions from the audience and a better start asking them because they are so good. Heres the first one. Didnt the importance of geography also motivate jefferson . Visavis the Louisiana Purchase. We moved west coast into spanish colonies et cetera. Right. So most people are taught say with me nonpartisan, the most important constitutional decision ever was marbury v. Madison. Right . Now marbury is not in my view barely make my top 10 constitutional decision. Yes theres judicial review but judicial review was established in america before Marbury States were doing this. State constitutional law way before marbury, and after marbury and extend your Supreme Court strikes down an act of congress which is what marbury is all about his mental dred scott 60 years later, 50 years later, dred scott is all made up. Once the issue of liberty involved in marbury . There is the issue of liberty. Its original versus upheld. Nothing to be more boring. I wrote an article about it and it bores even me. So marbury is not that big a deal. What is the most important constitutional decision ever . I told you. I said constitutional decision. The most important constitutional decision was lincolns decision to resist unilateral secession and later to free the slaves. Those are the big ones. Now once you understand that i say that marbury wasnt even the most important constitutional decision in 1843. What was . The most important constitutional decision of 1803 was called the Louisiana Purchase. President s are huge constitutional decision makers. If you think judges are important, in the constitution the president picked judges and judges are not supposed to pick president s. But bush v. Gore and have a chapter on why that was an outrage, a disgrace because actually judges were picking president s rather than the other way around. The chapter on florida and bush v. Gore. 1803 is a very big Louisiana Purchase. Thats a big. Our friend joe biden would say thats that doubles the landmass of america. It ensures we are going to survive as a nation that even if washington, d. C. Is burned to the ground in baltimore and fort mchenry almost all we cant just retreat back into the hinterland sufficiently because with all this land to retreat back into. So it can affect ensures that the french are not going to establish a toehold or the spanish. We kicked the british out. The Louisiana Purchase is a very big deal. All about geography. It opens up eventually pathways to texas and california from sea to shining sea. This book is very much in the Woody Guthrie tradition of california to new york violence. Yes, the Louisiana Purchase. And jefferson principles are strict construction but thank god he actually is a hypocrite if he doesnt follow his principles because he would bring a fool not to grab all this territory so yes great president s make important constitutional decision that determines whether we exist as a nation. The Louisiana Purchase very big emancipation proclamation very big. Lincolns decision to resist unilateral secession is very big. Marbury v. Madison much smaller. We have a second and then the question. Your chapter on wyoming, rocky mount view of the second and in which concludes in a very timely fashion by saying sounding reconstruction period might provide special focus on the concerns of africanamericans. Maybe you can tell us more about that. Answering this question, concerning the Second Amendment and the search for its original intent. You go back to the town of the nra and reconstruction. Why not go back further to the virginia declaration of rights . The actual origination of intent, the wellregulated militia. Theres no mention of the right to bear arms. Absolutely. Several things. One lets Pay Attention to state constitutions. Federalism is important in america. And so what was invoked, what was the virginia counterparts to the Second Amendment . In my massachusetts chapter i tell you about the language of the state search and seizure provisions of the massachusetts constitution of 1780. Theres an amazing interactive display over here where you can push buttons on the screen and see state constitutional, parts two their federal constitutional language. This is the states as laboratories. Almost everything in the federal constitution from start to finish, states that first. States had written constitutions first. Three branches of government bicameral legislatures and separation of powers. I told you that judicial review injuries. The framers stupidly forgot a bill of rights when they drafted this thing and that was an obvious omission because states have bills of rights. States covered of slavery first, some of them. States gave blacks the vote first. States gave women the vote for almost everything in our constitutional tradition states have done first. One point suppose would in a second and them at all. Almost every state constitution has a provision about arms in america, today in america. Entities state constitution are not just about militias. And i dont own a gun. Guns scare me but almost every state constitution theres a right to have a gun in the home for self protection. Its part of our american tradition, even if we didnt have the Second Amendment because we believe in rights. One way is to count to look at whats said in state constitution to either great student about 27 years ago the road a student note about the enumerator rights and the you can find them in part by looking at state constitutions. Thats the student actually. Students know. Liberals believe in privacy, for example. Its not necessarily numerate it and the federal constitution. Even if there were not assessed a second and then i can say they can have it for guns. Liberals want sex in homes. Give them both what they want. This is america. Live and let live. Lets be tolerant in Northern California tradition. Even if there were not a second and them at all that would be unenumerated writes for self protection because every state has so. Is part of our american ethos. Second point forget the founding. You live in lincolns house. We talked Jefferson Jefferson dies thus labeled. Enough with the jefferson stop, okay . You live in lincolns house. Lincoln reinterprets jefferson, four score and seven years ago this do i am wearing my lincoln tie. This is the gettysburg address but i cant write her at the National Constitution center. A very good value out of it holds up very well. So jefferson said all men are created equal. Thats what he said right over there Independence Hall but he didnt let the. You didnt read. He didnt do it. Lincoln lives it, embrace it, does it and he gives us a second that debate thats what the new National Constitution Center Project is all about celebrating second new birth of freedom. And that new birth of freedom bill of rights applies against the state. Thats what hugo black understood. The original bill of rights only limiting federal government. Whether you agree or not come almost every one is not a bill of rights case its a 14th amendment case. Congress shall make no law. The 10th amendment limits only the federal government that all the cases we think about brown v. Board of education of topeka, kansas. Getting versus rami, that florida. Roe v. Wade, that texas. Lawrence v. Texas. Griswold v. Connecticut. New york times v. Sullivan alabama. We live in lincolns house and hugo black is a 14th amendment world. The framers didnt use the phrase bill of rights to describe it. Here is what they were thinking of. Militias took up arms against lincoln vicksburg and gettysburg. They Like National armies. They understand its not about the militia anymore. Black people in their homes are entitled to have guns for self protection because they cant count on the cops to protect them. When guns are outlawed, the framers of the 14th amendment vision that National Rifle association is founded after the civil war by a group of exunion army officers. That is part of the story. The Second Amendment vision is still as important. Its more about the military and heres what it says. The military should look like us. They shouldnt be an alien occupying force. It shouldnt be a proto military. They should do what we tell them to do. In order to do that has to be represented in the house of representatives has to be represented. The militia and the people are one and the same. The right of the people in the militia are one and the same. People who vote should bear arms in the military. Today thats anachronistic. We are not switzerland. What are todays militia counterpart . At the local level Police Departments they should look like a community. Thats ferguson, baltimore, new york city. At the National Level we have lincolns army initialed look like america, too. Women as well as men, blacks and whites, as Colin Powell Tom Hanks and saving private ryan was a schoolteacher from pennsylvania alongside a sharpshooter from mississippi and a couple of fast talking ethics or new york city. They have local militias. That is modern america. Colin powell as head of the joint chiefs of women as well as men, and gays as well as straights. A collective vision and individual rights vision. You need to wonders in the founding and reconstruction of lincoln and the 19th amendment. Once women get the vote they have a right to serve in our military. That is the story. Gun country, Cowboy Country and also the equality states. It gives women the vote first and first as a woman elected governor. It is the first to let women on the jury that even in the 1870s when its still a territory. In 1870 wyoming promises Women Equal Pay for equal rights. [applause] we have time unfortunately for just one more question in here it is. You compare justice by two Justice Thomas. How would you compare the decisions . If you want to come down to washington d. C. In three weeks im going to be appearing with Justice Thomas at the national archives. Maybe cspan will cover that event. Justice thomas and i disagree on certain things, but i think we share very much a fidelity to the constitutional project. We take the text very seriously. I find Justice Thomas underestimated in the same way hugo black was underestimated the kinds yankees can be very smug about people who have southern accent and we think that they are just not smart and that is how lincoln was underestimated and hugo black was underestimated. I think that is true today of Clarence Thomas. I actually found his body of work very significant. I dont always agree with it, but its not flashy the way billy yet is. But theres a steadiness to it also a humility to it. If i were to send Clarence Tomba something i think you would actually read it. He is very open to the possibility he may have made a mistake early on and doesnt want to keep making mistakes. Im hoping he will get involved the National Constitution center. You and i are trying to get him involved. Would be so wonderful to get involved in this great second time in reconstruction process. When you go to his chambers, there is a portrait of lincoln there. Lincoln is his hero two. Lincoln should be all of our heroes. The story of the constitution is what unites us all north and south come east and west, liberal and conservative, republican and democrat, red and blue. That is what its all about. I am hoping we can about Justice Thomas in the National Constitution center in the years to come. Ladies and gentlemen you can see from this great teacher what it was that kindled m
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