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.
The Shameful Final Grievance of the Declaration of Independence
By Jeffrey Ostler, Beekman Professor of Northwest and Pacific History, University of Oregon
Jeffrey Ostler argues that the Declaration of Independence was not only designed to create a separate United States independent from Britain, but also to maintain slavery and oppress Native Americans.
By Simon Barnicle, Writer and Attorney
Simon Barnicle writes that adding new Democratic states could help bring the United States closer to majority-rule, and could increase pressure to add constitutional amendments to counteract current minority-rule constitutional provisions, like the Electoral College and the equal representation of senators.
The U.S. Military is Not Ready for a Constitutional Crisis
By Ken Harbaugh, Former U.S. Navy Pilot
Ken Harbaugh contends that everyone in the military should be required to take a course about the Constitution— a document they have sworn to protect—and to pass a basic test about its contents so that they can better understand it and know when it may be appropriate to disobey an unconstitutional order.
Impeachment Will Never Be the Same Again
By Jane Chong, Lawyer, Williams & Connolly
Jane Chong discusses how the impeachment of Donald Trump may set a unique precedent for future impeachments that could lead to the House undertaking all investigatory matters, with the Senate sitting only as an appellate body and declining to investigate further if it is controlled by the same party as the president.
America May Be Nearing the End of the Roe Era
By Garrett Epps, Professor of Law, University of Baltimore School of Law
Garrett Epps looks at the Supreme Court’s upcoming abortion case, June Medical Services v. Russo, and says that accepting the arguments of Louisiana and the U.S. Solicitor General, which would disallow doctors’ ability to sue against abortion regulations, would overturn 50 years of precedent and allow states to impose severely restrictive abortion laws.
Madison’s Nightmare Has Come to America
By Michael Gerhardt, Burton Craige Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence
Michael Gerhardt asserts that the acquittal of Donald Trump in the impeachment trial laid bare some of the flaws in the U.S. constitutional system—and that partially due to the rise of extreme partisanship, social media, and the direct election of senators, it may be unrealistic to expect a future president will be removed from office through impeachment, so the electoral process may be the only remedy.
