The State of the American Idea

Run time: 52 minutes

Charles Cooke, Melody Barnes, and Sean Wilentz explore the debate about the core values of the American Idea—liberty, equality, democracy, and federalism—throughout American history and model the way in which Americans of different perspectives can come together in the spirit of civil dialogue. Listen now

We the People and Live at the National Constitution Center are available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Learn more 

A Brief History of Presidential Candidate Debates

by Scott Bomboy | Read time: 5 minutes

“Debates between presidential candidates have become an important part of the election process every four years, but in historical terms, these events are relatively new. ...” Read more

A Constitution ‘Hard, But Not That Hard’ to Change

by Marcia Coyle | Read time: 5 minutes

“Ten years ago in a public conversation, journalist Marvin Kalb asked the late Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia what he would do if he could change the U.S. Constitution. Scalia replied that he would make the Constitution easier to change. ...” Read more

NBC10: Jeffrey Rosen on the NCC Hosting the Upcoming Presidential Debate

National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen appeared on Philadelphia’s NBC10 to discuss the National Constitution Center’s role in and historical significance of hosting the September 2024 ABC News Presidential Debate. Watch now

The Preamble

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.” 

Read interpretations in the Interactive Constitution

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