Constitution Daily Blog
Civil War
On the day, Justice Noah Swayne confirmed by the Senate
On this day in 1862, Noah Swayne was confirmed by the Senate to replace Justice John McLean, one of two dissenters in the Dred…
The U.S. Supreme Court and Vigilantes
Are we becoming a nation of vigilantes? A recent opinion article by two legal scholars suggested the answer is yes.
On this day, the Republican Party names its first candidates
On July 6, 1854, disgruntled voters in a new political party named its first candidates to contest the Democrats over the issue of…
How Congress created an army of millions in 1917
On April 27, 1917. Republican California Representative Julius Kahn introduced to the House Resolution 3545—known better as the…
Looking back at the Ku Klux Klan Act
The Ku Klux Klan Act may be a law from the Reconstruction era, but it still relevant today as a way to address modern civil rights…
Andrew Jackson, presidential censure and the Constitution
On March 28, 1834, the U.S. Senate censured President Andrew Jackson in a tug-of-war that had questionable constitutional roots…
Dred Scott decision still resonates today
On March 6, 1857, the Supreme Court handed down its decision in the Dred Scott case, which had a direct impact on the coming of…
How we wound up with the income tax
Imagine a world with a federal income tax; if you were an American citizen before 1913, with a few exceptions you didn’t have to…
The Constitution offers another path to Trump accountability
The 25th Amendment is a non-starter in the effort to remove President Donald Trump from office. Impeachment may stall in the U.S.…
The Constitution and contested presidential elections
The Electoral College is a uniquely American institution and no stranger to controversy. But legally contested presidential…
