Constitutional Chats Presented By Constituting America

In our previous chat, we discussed how Iran's form of government is a republic in nature, similar to our own republic, but is decidedly authoritarian in substance.  In today's chat, we are discussing Saudi Arabia, a country that lacks those same institutions in favor of an absolute monarch.  Leading a country of roughly 38 million, the Saudi king is the head of the ruling family that dates back ov...

This country has a constitution which establishes an executive, legislature and judiciary.   They have rights guaranteed under the law.   No, we are not talking about the United States.   Today we are discussing Iran.   Although their Constitution May resemble ours, in practice, their government operates very very differently. Join us as we discover how and why and discuss just who the Ayatollah i...

When you hear the term "Artificial Intelligence," what comes to mind?  Seemingly overnight, AI has become a topic of daily conversation with the rise of Chat GPT in 2022.  But what exactly is AI?  How can it be used?  What are the Constitutional issues raised with AI? What are the potential effects on our civil rights and civil liberties?  These are the questions we tackle in this week's Constitut...

The Department of Foreign Affairs started off as the first Department of the executive branch with 6 employees led by Thomas Jefferson in 1789. Now it's called The United States State Department and employs 75,000 and maintains diplomatic relations with around 180 countries.   But what do you know about this historic agency and the work it does around the world?   What is its role in International...

Ben Franklin wrote in 1789, "…nothing is certain except death and taxes."  Our chat today is all about the IRS and our taxes.  Last year, as part of the Inflation Reduction Act, Congress approved $80 billion in new IRS funding.  How exactly is this money going to be spent?  Will it lead to an increase in audits for everyday taxpayers?  Why did Congress allocate this money related to reducing infla...

Ever heard the term "alphabet agencies?"  It often refers to various federal government agencies that have usually 3-letter names.  Many of these are in the national security community: DHS, CIA, FBI, NSA, DIA, ODNI and many more.  What exactly do you know about the various agencies and their mission?  When were they formed and for what purpose?  How did September 11th change the scope of their mi...

What exactly do you know about the debt and debt ceiling?   What are they?   Think of the debt ceiling like the credit limit on a credit card and the debt is the total sum of all that spending. In this analogy, wisdom would say spending should be kept to a minimum and the balance paid off in full each month.   Unfortunately, this is not how our federal government operates and we routinely rack up...

What would the Founders think of social media's unlimited and instant communication across the country and around the world?  Would they try to regulate it?  From what authority could the Founders and subsequent government actually regulate social media?  What are the main differences between social media entities and TV or radio which use public spectrum to broadcast?  These are questions worth p...

We share a 1,951 mile border with Mexico and that border sees millions upon millions of border crossings involving people and vehicles.   Seemingly on a daily basis in the news cycle, we hear news related to the border.   In this week's chat, we are honored to have two guests who have seen events unfold along the border in person: Former Acting United States Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wol...

It has a population more than 4 times that of the United States.   It produces goods and services we use in our daily lives. In our modern economy with the free-flow of information and high levels of technology, one must wonder the impact the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has on the global economy.   Here's an interesting point to ponder as we get into today's discussion: China invents very little...

His father died when was 11.  His formal education ended at 14.  By 17, he had mastered trigonometry and geometry and worked as a surveyor in the American West.  Beyond that, he was a solider, leader and our country's first President.  Yet, among all of his extraordinary accomplishments, Washington showed our new country what leadership was and is.  After victory in the revolutionary war, he resig...

Political parties.  President George Washington warned against the rise of political parties (then, the Democratic-Republicans and the Federalists), going so far to say they could be used "to subvert the Power of the People" in his Farewell Address in 1796.  In our current Congress, we have seen play out what Washington was warning us against.  In this episode we are discussing bipartisanship and...

You won't find Congress' oversight and investigations power in the U.S. Constitution, but it's one of the most important tools Congress has to do its job! Through Congressional Committees and their oversight and investigations work, Congress serves as a watchdog over the executive branch and researches national issues in need of legislative solutions. Today we discuss congressional oversight and i...

Members of Congress legislate on a wide range of issues: education, energy, agricultural, space, finance, taxation, national defense, immigration, to name a few.   Can we reasonably expect members to be well-versed in the particulars in each of these issues as they pertain to upcoming or pending legislation?   Not likely.   Enter the committee systems.   Over 200 congressional committees and sub-c...

There are 535 members of Congress: 435 in the House and 100 in the Senate.   Each member has their own priorities and agenda. With so many differing priorities, how does anything get done?   Enter party leadership.   Regular Constituting America viewers know the roles of a U. S. Representative and Senator, but how much do you know about the congressional leadership?   There's a Speaker of the Hous...

What do you really know about the US Senate?  You probably know there are 100 US Senators and they are elected every six years. And that there are two per state. But do you know why?  The Senate has equal representation among the states for a reason that dates back to the Great Compromise of 1787 and is generally more prestigious than the US House of Representatives.  We dive into each of these is...

It's March 1789.   You've been elected to serve your community as a member of Congress.   You arrive at Federal Hall in New York City to begin your service.   You are assigned a desk and…that's it.   No office.   No support staff.   It's a far cry from today where members have staff and offices in DC and in their districts.   We are continuing our discussion on Congress and the Constitution by dis...

435 members from all 50 states.  Elected every two years.  Created by Article I of the United States Constitution.  Regular listeners of our podcast will know from these facts we are talking today about our U.S. House of Representatives.  What does Congress do?  How does it function?  How well do members of Congress know the Constitution? Today we are kicking off a new series in which we will be d...

Once again, the Founders are showing off their talent to address complex issues succinctly in the Bill of Rights with the Tenth Amendment.  At just 28 words, the 10th amendment has a profound impact on the side-by-side existence of federal law and state law.  Simply put, powers not delegated federally are reserved to the states.  Paraphrasing Madison assuaging the concerns of the Antifederalists i...

The Ninth Amendment is not an amendment you hear discussed too often nor is there significant caselaw regarding it.  However, that in no way diminishes the importance of it.  To put simply, the Ninth Amendment is a guarantee the Bill of Rights does not limit our rights to only those previously enumerated in the document.  How exactly does this affect each of us?  How was Madison appeasing both the...

We've spoken before of the Founders' penchant for brevity.   The Eighth Amendment takes that habit to a new level.   Just 16 words long, it still manages to codify three separate clauses related to limiting fines and punishment.   Just what are these three clauses?   What is the history behind the concerns regarding governmental power to punish that the Founders were alleviating and limiting?   Ju...

The Founding Fathers were fond of brevity in creating our constitution.  While few in words and somewhat overlooked compared to some of the other amendments, the 7th Amendment is long in impact.  To be succinct, the 7th Amendment guarantees civil cases can be heard and decided by a jury.  Why was this needed?  What concerns were the Founders alleviating?  And why does it mention a $20 minimum disp...

If someone is arrested in the United States, they will soon get their day in court to determine guilt or innocence, right?   Imagine if that wasn't always the case.   Imagine you are arrested and the state keeps you locked up for an unspecified amount of time before going to trial.   Sadly, this was reality before the Sixth Amendment.   What does it say exactly?   What are the six legal protection...

Regular viewers of our podcast certainly understand the role of the Bill of Rights was not so much to grant rights to citizens but to limit the actions of the federal government in curtailing an individual's rights.   That trend continues in the Fourth Amendment.   It places two vital restrictions on the government: unreasonable search and seizures and warrants only with probable cause.   Why is t...

"I plead the 5th!"   We have all heard that line before whether it was on the evening news or a legal drama TV show.   It's   a legal protection pulled directly from the 5th Amendment which outlines criminal procedure and applies to federal, state and local governments.   What exactly does it mean?   What is a grand jury, the double jeopardy clause and the takings clause?   We are excited to have...