Battle for the Constitution: Week of January 25th, 2021 Roundup
Below is a round-up of the latest from the Battle for the Constitution: a special project on the constitutional debates in American life, in partnership with The Atlantic.
By Quinta Jurecic, Managing Editor, Lawfare
Quinta Jurecic argues that the United States should set up a truth commission to understand the abuses of the Trump era and what led to them—and if that cannot be done, at least investigations should occur.
The Senate Trial Will Test Whether Republicans Care Even About Themselves
By Jane Chong, Former Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
Jane Chong writes that the upcoming trial in the Senate of Donald Trump will test James Madison’s underlying theory of government—that the self-interest and ambition of each branch of government will ensure that none becomes too powerful.
The Great Free-Speech Reversal
By Genevieve Lakier, Assistant Professor of Law and Herbert and Marjorie Fried Teaching Scholar, University of Chicago Law School
Genevieve Lakier describes how conservatives and liberals have switched positions on issues of free speech—with liberals originally advocating for the First Amendment to apply to private companies and conservatives decrying it, and now the inverse—and argues that even without the First Amendment applying to companies, Congress should enact regulation that structures how social media platforms moderate speech.