We the People

By National Constitution Center

A weekly show of constitutional debate hosted by National Constitution Center President and CEO Jeffrey Rosen where listeners can hear the best arguments on all sides of the constitutional issues at t... more

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FAQs about We the People:

How many episodes does We the People have?

The podcast currently has 580 episodes available.

We the People episodes:

August 28, 2025The History and Future of Partisan Gerrymandering in America
In this episode, Bradley Smith of Capital University Law School and Nicholas Stephanopoulos of Harvard Law School join to discuss the history and future of partisan gerrymandering, including the mid-decade redistricting battles of the Gilded Age and the ongoing mid-decade redistricting efforts in Texas and California.

Resources
Rucho v. Common Cause (2019)

Reynolds v. Sims (1964)

Nicholas Stephanopoulos, Aligning Election Law (2024)

Nicholas Stephanopoulos & Eric McGhee, “Partisan Gerrymandering and the Efficiency Gap,” Chicago Unbound (2014)

Bradley Smith, Unfree Speech: The Folly of Campaign Finance Reform (2001)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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1h 14min
August 21, 2025A Conversation on America’s 250th
In this episode, Sabrina Lynn Motley, director of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival at the Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, and Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, discuss how their institutions are celebrating America’s 250th birthday. This conversation took place at Chautauqua Institution 2025 Summer Assembly.

Resources
Jeff Rosen, The Pursuit of Liberty: How Hamilton and Jefferson Ignited the Lasting Battle Over Power in America

Chautauqua Institution, Sabrina Lynn Motley and Jeffrey Rosen

National Constitution Center, America’s Town Hall

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

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Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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59min
August 14, 2025Is Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act Unconstitutional?
In this episode, Bradley Smith of Capital University Law School and Nicholas Stephanopoulos of Harvard Law School join to discuss the history and future of racial gerrymandering, including how the Court’s upcoming decision in Louisiana v. Callais could affect the Voting Rights Act.

Resources
Louisiana v. Callais (2025)

Allen v. Milligan (2023)

Shelby County v. Holder (2013)

Nicholas Stephanopoulos, Aligning Election Law (2024)

Bradley Smith, Unfree Speech: The Folly of Campaign Finance Reform (2001)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen.

Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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1h 5min
August 07, 2025The Oldest Constitutional Question
In this episode, Richard Primus of the University of Michigan Law School and John Harrison of the University of Virginia School of Law join to discuss Primus’s new book The Oldest Constitutional Question: Enumeration and Federal Power, which challenges the prevailing understanding of congressional power and argues that Congress is not limited to its textually enumerated powers. Their conversation traces how this fundamental disagreement has shaped key moments in American constitutional history, from the Founding Era to the New Deal, and why the debate remains unsettled today.

Resources
Richard Primus, The Oldest Constitutional Question: Enumeration and Federal Power (2025)

Richard Primus, “’The Essential Characteristic’: Enumerated Powers and the Bank of the United States,” Michigan Law Review (2018)

John Harrison, “Enumerated Federal Power and the Necessary and Proper Clause (reviewingThe Origins of the Necessary and Proper Clause by Gary Lawson, Geoffrey P. Miller, Robert G. Natelson, Guy I. Seidman),” The University of Chicago Law Review (2011)

McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.
⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.
Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen.
Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.
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...more
1h 2min
July 31, 2025The Past, Present, and Future of Abortion in America
In this episode, Mary Ziegler of the UC Davis School of Law and Stephen Gilles of the Quinnipiac University School of Law join to discuss Ziegler’s new book Personhood: The New Civil War over Reproduction, which explores the history and goals of the anti-abortion movement in the United States.

Resources
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)

Mary Ziegler, Personhood: The New Civil War over Reproduction (2025)

Mary Ziegler, Abortion and Law in America: Roe v. Wade to the Present (2020)

Stephen Gilles, “What Does Dobbs Mean for the Constitutional Right to a Life-or-Health-Preserving Abortion,” Mississippi Law Journal (2023)

Stephen Gilles, “Why Fourteenth Amendment Personhood Requires Live Birth,” Notre Dame Journal of Ethics and Public Policy (2025)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

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Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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56min
July 24, 2025W.E.B. Du Bois and His Impact on America
In this episode, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David Levering Lewis joins to unpack Du Bois’ life, legacy, and enduring impact on American history and discuss his new memoir, The Stained Glass Window.

Resources
David Levering Lewis, The Stained Glass Window: A Family History as the American Story, 1790–1958, (2025)

David Levering Lewis, W.E.B. Du Bois: A Biography 1868–1963, (2009)

American Historical Association, “W.E.B. Du Bois (1868–1963): Historian, Sociologist, Editor, Activist,” Perspectives on History, (2023)

W.E.B. Du Bois, The Talented Tenth, (1903)

W.E.B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk: Centennial Edition, (2003)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen.

Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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49min
July 17, 2025Can President Trump unilaterally lay off 1,400 Department of Education employees?
In this episode, Derek Black of the University of South Carolina School of Law and Neal McCluskey of the Cato Institute join to discuss this recent emergency docket decision and explore the history of federal involvement in education.

Resources 
McMahon v. New York (2025)

Scott Harris with Derek Black, “Trump’s Targeting of Education Department Could Eliminate Dozens of Federal Programs for Millions of Students Nationwide,” Counterpoint (Feb. 10, 2025)

Derek Black, “Dangerous Learning: The South’s Long War on Black Literacy,” (2025)

Neal McCluskey, “Right Supreme Court Call on Downsizing the US Department of Education,” Cato at Liberty (July 14, 2025)

Neal McCluskey, Feds in the Classroom: How Big Government Corrupts, Cripples, and Compromises American Education, (2007)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen.

Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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58min
July 10, 2025Covering the Supreme Court
In this episode, Jess Bravin of The Wall Street Journal, Jan Crawford of CBS News, and Fred Smith Jr. of Stanford Law School join to explore polarization on the Court and the role of the media and the political branches in shaping public perceptions.

Resources
Trump v. CASA, Inc. (2025)

Jess Bravin and Mariah Timms, “Supreme Court Limits Rulings Against Trump on Birthright Citizenship,” The Wall Street Journal (June 27, 2025)

Jan Crawford, Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for the Control of the United States Supreme Court (2007)

Fred O. Smith, Jr. and Peter O’Neill, “The Forgotten Face of ‘Our Federalism,’” The Yale Law Journal (forthcoming, 2026)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

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53min
July 03, 2025Supreme Court Term Roundup
On June 27, 2025, the Supreme Court delivered its final decisions of the 2024–25 term. In this episode, Steve Vladeck of the Georgetown University Law Center and Sarah Isgur of SCOTUSblog join to discuss the significant cases from this Supreme Court term.

Resources
Trump v. CASA, Inc. (2025)

Mahmoud v. Taylor (2025)

DHS v. DVD (2025)

Steve Vladeck, “163: A New Kind of Judicial Supremacy,” One First (June 30, 2025)

Advisory Opinions podcast

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

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Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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1h 1min
June 26, 2025Unpacking the Supreme Court’s decision in United States v. Skrmetti
On June 18, the Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law that prohibits medical transitions for transgender minors. In this episode, William Eskridge Jr. of Yale Law School and Christopher Green of The Ohio State University join to debate the decision and to discuss the meaning of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.

Resources
United States v. Skrmetti (2025)

Christopher Green, Brief amicus curiae, United States v. Skrmetti (Oct. 15, 2024)

William Eskridge, et al., Brief amici curiae, United States v. Skrmetti (Sept. 3, 2024)

Geduldig v. Aiello (1974)

Bostock v. Clayton County (2020)

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Questions or comments about the show? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠

Continue the conversation by following us on social media @ConstitutionCtr.

⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

Follow, rate, and review wherever you listen.

Join us for an upcoming ⁠⁠⁠⁠live program⁠⁠⁠⁠ or watch recordings on ⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Support our important work.
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...more
1h 7min

FAQs about We the People:

How many episodes does We the People have?

The podcast currently has 580 episodes available.

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