Barely Averting a Constitutional Crisis
Summary
Hosts Sarah Isger and David French reflect on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, debating Justice Kavanaugh’s remarks and the necessity of accepting enemies’ stated motives. They analyze the legal chaos in Missouri’s redistricting, arguing that the Secretary of State’s actions constituted unlawful defiance unlike similar Democratic maneuvers in Virginia. The episode also features a critique of Andy Smarick’s "text, history, and tradition" framework, applying his three questions to abortion and gun rights to expose the test’s malleability.
Topics discussed
Intro: Andy Smarick and Caleb Nelson articles
September 11th news and firefighter stories
Kavanaugh's comments on Islamic terrorism motives
Greg Costa's 9/11 clerkship and personal reflections
Missouri redistricting legal battle and contempt hearing
Comparing Missouri and Virginia redistricting tactics
Sponsor break: Anthropic and Claude AI
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Andy Smarick: Text, history, and tradition analysis
Applying Smarick's 3 questions to Abortion and 2nd Amendment
Caleb Nelson: Unitary Executive and Necessary and Proper Clause
Sponsor break: Anthropic and Claude AI
2nd Circuit case: Pride flags in classrooms vs. Kennedy v. Bremerton
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