We the People

In this episode, Mary Sarah Bilder, Founders Professor at Boston College Law School, explores the history of rights and liberties in America and the origins of the Bill of Rights. She traces how ideas about rights developed before, during, and after the American Revolution, shaped debates over the Constitution, and ultimately led to the adoption of the first 10 amendments. She also explores how those amendments came to be known collectively as the Bill of Rights and gained the significance they have today. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.

Resources

“The Blessings of Liberty and Bills of Rights,” by Mary Sarah Bilder for the National Constitution Center

Bill of Rights Resources, National Constitution Center

The Promise of America: Reflections on Our Enduring Ideals, (2026)



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In a recent decision, the U.S. Supreme Court held that law enforcement’s use of a geofence warrant, which collected identity and location data from mobile phone users, violated the Fourth Amendment's protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. Professor Orin S. Kerr of Stanford University unpacks the decision in Chatrie v. United States and explores what it means for the future of the Fourth Amendment, privacy, and government surveillance in the digital age. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.



Resources

Orin S. Kerr, “The Fourth Amendment After Chatrie,” Stanford Law Working Paper Series (Aug 12, 2026)

Orin S. Kerr, The Digital Fourth Amendment: Privacy and Policing in Our Online World (2025)

The Fourth Amendment, National Constitution Center

Chatrie v. United States (2026)

Case v. Montana (2026)

Carpenter v. United States (2018)

Riley v. California (2014)

United States v. Knotts (1983)

United States v. Leon (1984)

Mapp v. Ohio (1961)



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In this episode, prize-winning author and historian Fergus M. Bordewich discusses his latest book, Centennial: The Great Fair of 1876 and the Invention of America’s Future, which explores the story of the nation’s 100th birthday and the first world’s fair. Bordewich traces the lives of President Rutherford B. Hayes, the inventor Alexander Graham Bell, railroad magnate Tom Scott, and the African American sculptor Edmonia Lewis—revealing a country striving to live up to the promise of the founders while bracing for the tidal wave of the 20th century. Thomas Donnelly, lead scholar at the National Constitutional Center, moderates.

Resources

Fergus M. Bordewich, Centennial: The Great Fair of 1876 and the Invention of America’s Future (2026)

Fergus M. Bordewich, Klan War: Ulysses S. Grant and the Battle to Save Reconstruction (2023)

Fergus M. Bordewich, Congress at War: How Republican Reformers Fought the Civil War, Defied Lincoln, Ended Slavery, and Remade America (2020)

Fergus M. Bordewich, The First Congress: How James Madison, George Washington, and a Group of Extraordinary Men Invented the Government (2016)

Fergus M. Bordewich, America’s Great Debate: Henry Clay, Stephen A. Douglas, and the Compromise that Preserved the Union (2012)

The Hayes-Tilden Election of 1876, Live at the National Constitution Center (Oct 13, 2020)

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When Americans think about the Declaration of Independence, we tend to remember its most famous words: “We hold these truths to be self-evident,” and its promise of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” But to fully understand the Declaration we also need to read the section most Americans skip: its 27 grievances against King George III. For the founding generation, these grievances were not simply a list of complaints. They were central to the Declaration’s argument, laying out the case for how the King and Parliament had violated their rights and why independence had become necessary. Historian Rosemarie Zagarri explores what the grievances meant in 1776, what they reveal about the colonists’ understanding of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and how reading them more closely can deepen our understanding of the Declaration as a constitutional argument and a justification for revolution. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.



Resources

The Declaration of Independence, National Constitution Center

“The Declaration’s Grievances Against the King,” by Rosemarie Zagarri for the National Constitution Center

Primary Source: Declaration of Independence (Short list of grievances), National Constitution Center

The Promise of America: Reflections on, Our Enduring Ideals

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The Supreme Court's latest term featured landmark decisions on executive power, birthright citizenship, voting rights, and more. But beyond the headlines, what did the term tell us about the Roberts Court itself? In this episode, Masha Hansford and Jonathan Adler examine the justices' opinions to explore the defining decisions, shifting coalitions, and influential concurrences and dissents that shaped the term. Together, they consider the Court's institutional role, the distinct jurisprudence of its individual justices, and what this term may signal for the future of constitutional law. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.

Resources

2026 Supreme Court Review: Key Decisions, Executive Power, Civil Discourse, National Constitution Center

“Four cases to watch in the Supreme Court’s next term,” Scott Bomboy for the National Constitution Center’s Constitution Daily Blog

“The Supreme Court in Review: Another Landmark Term,” Scott Bomboy for the National Constitution Center’s Constitution Daily Blog

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Stay connected with We the People—follow, rate, and review the show wherever you listen.

Questions or comments? Email ⁠⁠⁠⁠podcast@constitutioncenter.org⁠⁠⁠⁠.

Follow @ConstitutionCtr on social media and ⁠⁠⁠⁠sign up⁠⁠⁠⁠ to receive Constitution Weekly, our email roundup of constitutional news and debate.

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