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WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 14, 2025
** This Week on the Constitution
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** Jack Greene and Gordon Wood on Founding Truths & Revolutionary Myths ([link removed])
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The American founding was shaped by both shared ideals and enduring disagreements about their meaning. As Gordon Wood and Jack Greene remind us, the Declaration of Independence expressed principles of equality while also reflecting the realities of its time. As we contemplate on Constitution Day, we are called to recognize how these tensions gave rise to the constitutional tradition—one forged through debate, dialogue, and the continual pursuit of freedom and self-government.
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** How can reflecting on the Constitution help us cultivate a shared understanding of liberty and encourage a more civil practice of freedom?
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** “In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.” — James Madison
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This week we commemorate Constitution Day and think back on 238 years of its enduring legacy. For the framers of the Constitution, written law was not only a framework for government but also a safeguard of liberty. They sought to establish institutions that could channel human ambition, protect individual rights, and secure the rule of law across generations. By analyzing the origins and enduring influence of the Constitution, we can better appreciate both its stability and its adaptability. This week’s featured resources invite us to consider how reflection, learning, and renewed civic understanding are essential to sustaining the principles first entrusted to the American experiment.
** Articles
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** On the Law of the Declaration of Independence ([link removed])
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Adam Tomkins, A Call to Liberty ([link removed])
The Declaration of Independence was grounded in centuries of legal precedent and constitutional tradition. By drawing on common law and established grievances, its authors framed liberty as part of an enduring story of governance and rights.
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** Constituting Unity ([link removed])
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Yuval Levine, Law and Liberty ([link removed])
The Constitution was designed not only to secure liberty but also to foster unity in a diverse society. By compelling negotiation, coalition-building, and shared action across differences, it provides a framework for cohesion that remains vital in an age of division.
** “We the People” are Responsible for Upholding the Constitution ([link removed])
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Erec Smith, Online Library of Liberty ([link removed])
Laws are crafted to outlast individual passions, yet their strength relies on how faithfully they are upheld. History reminds us that the endurance of the Constitution rests less on the words themselves than on the character and choices of those who apply them.
** Smith’s Dreams: Economic and Political Liberties in a Good Polity ([link removed])
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Paolo Silvestri and Benoît Walraevens, Adam Smith Work ([link removed]) s ([link removed])
Adam Smith envisioned a “good government” where commerce, liberty, and justice were closely linked. This essay explores how Smith’s reflections on economic and political liberties reveal both the promise of independence and prosperity, and the persistent challenge of safeguarding institutions against corruption and decline.
** Constitutional Tradeoffs ([link removed])
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Jon Murphy, Economic Library of Liberty ([link removed])
Constitutions promise to restrain government, but how well they do so may depend on something as simple as language. This essay considers how readability, precision, and context shape constitutional compliance, and how tradeoffs between clarity and consistency affect the durability of constitutional order.
** Podcasts
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** Yuval Levin on Hope and Politics in America ([link removed])
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The Future of Liberty ([link removed])
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** Inventing American Constitutionalism ([link removed])
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The Law & Liberty Podcast ([link removed])
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** Richard Epstein on the Constitution ([link removed])
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EconTalk ([link removed])
** Videos
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** Randy Barnett on Liberty under Law ([link removed])
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The Future of Liberty ([link removed])
Mitch Daniels and Randy Barnett reflect on the challenges of campus discourse, the evolution of Barnett’s philosophy, and his defense of originalism. Their conversation highlights enduring constitutional questions about rights, government authority, and the balance between property and liberty.
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