Your Weekly Constitutional

Awhile back, we did an episode on Compulsory Vaccination that focused upon whether you have a constitutional right to refuse state-mandated innoculations.

The response was overwhelming. Many of you wanted more discussion of the underlying medical issues - not just whether we have a "liberty interest" in refusing vaccinations, but whether doing so is a good idea. So here it is: "Compulsory Vaccination II: The Rest of the Story."

We join Meg Kennedy on a worldwide manhunt - well, actually, it's more like a furniture hunt.

Meg is the Acting Director of Museum Programs at James Madison's Montpelier, which means that she's in charge of finding original pieces of furnture, decorations and documents to bring back to the Madison home, no matter where in the world the search may take her.

Meg is a historical Nancy Drew - and, yes, she even talks about an old clock.

We'll speak with Catherine Allgor about her new book, "The Queen of America," which discusses not only Dolley Madison, but also Mary Cutts, the relatively unknown woman who gave us almost everything we know about Dolley.

Mary Cutts is an example of the "vanishing women" of American history, women whose many and significant contributions have been obscured not only by the passage of time, but by the times in which they lived.

Join us for an enlightening interview with Professor Allgor, and for excerpts from her November, 2012 presentation at Montpelier.

No, not that President. Another president, and one who knows a great deal about the subject: Jonathan R. Alger, the new President of James Madison University. In his old job as Assistant General Counsel at the University of Michigan, President Alger oversaw two of the most important affirmative action cases in U.S. history. Those two cases - Grutter and Gratz - emphasized the importance of diversity in higher education. And those two cases might get reversed this term.

Is educational diversity a constitutional basis for affirmative action programs in college and university admissions? Join us for the inside story of the Grutter and Gratz cases, and what might happen to them when the the Supreme Court decides Fisher v. the University of Texas.

The State of Georgia has miles and miles of beautiful highways, and the Ku Klux Klan wants to adopt one. But the Governor doesn't think that's such a good idea.

Now the Klan has a lawyer - two lawyers, actually - from the Georgia branch of the American Civil Liberties Union. And we talked to both of them. We also talked to the head of the Georgia branch of the ACLU and asked her why she would agree to represent such clients.

It doesn't get any better than this.

Ever think that the Founders were a bunch of demigods with chiseled features, carved in marble and mounted on pedestals, who spent their lives striking poses and making memorable speeches? Yeah, we did too. Then we grew up.

And when we started really studying our Founders, we learned something: while many of them were extraordinary people, they were also, well, people. And that means that they had flaws. Some more than others.

This is the story of one particular Founder who had more than his share of - ahem - moral flexibility, a fellow who did some extraordinary things, but who also had a few of what our younger listeners might call Epic Fails. His name was William Blount, and we call him our Founding Scoundrel.

Ever feel like somebody's watching you? Well maybe someone is.

We talk to a federal magistrate who is very concerned about the remarkable number of secret surveillance orders being issued by the courts, orders that enable the government to access your text messages, emails, and even to track your mobile phone's location - all without your knowledge.

Don't believe us? Ask David Petraeus. Or simply listen to this episode - but you may want to use somebody else's computer.

We talk about a variety of controversial constitutional issues -- from the new health care mandate to gun control -- with the 2012 candidates for Virginia's Ninth Congressional District, incumbent Morgan Griffith, a Republican, and challenger Anthony Flaccavento, a Democrat.

The two candidates have constitutional perspectives that are very respresentative of their respective parties. In fact, we're willing to bet that, wherever you live, you have - or will one day - face a similar choice of constitutional philosophies in your district's congressional race.

Of course, the 2012 race is over now, and the winner of the Fightin' Ninth was . . . .

The Founders thought this! The Framers said that!

You've heard such statements. In fact, it sometimes seems that everyone who has a strong opinion about the Constitution tries to enlist the Framers as allies. But how many modern pundits have actually done their homework? Are their claims about the Framers accurate?

Well, here's one fellow who has done the research: Michael Meyerson of the University of Baltimore's School of Law. Mike has gone back and actually read what several of the most prominent Framers said, wrote and did on the subject of church-state relations - people like George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and, of course, James Madison. And Mike tells us all about it in a lively, entertaining way. We had a great time speaking with him, and we guarantee that you'll enjoy him as much as we did.

And once you've listened, you can tell all of your friends what the most important Framers really thought about church-state relations.

Git along there, little dogies -- it's our annual Roundup of interesting and important cases on the docket of the United States Supreme Court.

Grab your ropes, saddle up and join Professors Judie Barger, Pat Baker, Charlie Condon, Kendall Issac, Buzz Belleville and Doug McKechnie as they pick six fascinating cases to discuss with your host, Stewart Harris. It's a good 'un.