Consider the Constitution

The Declaration Is Our Inheritance

The Declaration of Independence announced more than a separation from Britain. It made a claim about government itself: that people hold rights government did not grant a

You Compromise on Politics, Not on Principles

We know James Madison the thinker. The architect of the Constitution. The author of the Bill of Rights. But Madison was also a working politician — and a very good one.

The Chapter Between the Revolution and the Constitution

We tend to jump straight from the Revolution to the Constitutional Convention — from a young James Madison to the Father of the Constitution. But the years in between are

More Than Decoration: What Montpelier's Objects Reveal About Power and Slavery

What can a bird's nest, a set of porcelain ice cream vases, and a portrait of Confucius tell us about the early American republic? In this episode, host Dr. Katie Cr

The Man Behind "We the People": Recovering James Wilson

The three most famous words in American government — We the People — were written by a founder most Americans have never heard of. Host Dr. Katie Crawford-Lackey sits do

Sacred Words: Jefferson, Madison, and the Language of Religious Freedom

Thomas Jefferson and James Madison agreed on almost everything when it came to religious freedom. But they talked about it in completely different ways. Historian Dr. Joh

Becoming Madison

We know James Madison as the Father of the Constitution. But who was he before that? In this special episode, Dr. Katie Crawford Lackey takes the guest seat to explore th

Making the Constitution Readable: PBS' Ben Sheehan on Civics, Comedy, and Closing the Knowledge Gap

What does the Constitution actually say — and why haven't most of us read it? Ben Sheehan, bestselling author and award-winning digital creator, joins host Dr. Katie

250 Years Later: The Philosopher Who Made It Possible

The words are familiar — life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness — but do we really know what they meant to the men who wrote them? As America marks 250 years of independ

The Constitution Before the Constitution with Dr. Zachary Deibel

Before the Declaration of Independence, before the Constitutional Convention, colonists were already debating the meaning of a constitution — and it didn't look anyt

The Temple and the Republic: Architecture, Liberty, and Madison's Legacy

This episode is part of a special five-part miniseries examining James Madison's role in the American Revolution and the founding of the United States. As part of Mo

Women and the Constitution

When the Constitution was drafted in 1787, women weren't explicitly excluded — they were simply not addressed. Dr. Catherine Allgor, historian and former President o

Promises to Keep: Madison, Self-Government, and the Citizen's Responsibility

This episode is part of a five-part miniseries examining James Madison's role in the American Revolution and the founding of the United States. Part of Montpelier&ap

The Supreme Court's Credibility

The Supreme Court has no army, no budget, and no way to enforce its own rulings. Its power rests entirely on the credibility of its words. Attorney and author Peter Cohen

Madison's Revolutionary Legacy: From Virginia Rights to the War of 1812

This episode is part of a special five-part miniseries examining James Madison's role in the American Revolution and the founding of the United States. As part of Mo

The Foundation of Legislative Politics

When Congress can't pass laws, is the problem in the Constitution—or in the rules that govern how legislators actually do their work? In this episode, Dr. Katie Craw

Loyalists, Patriots, and the Reality of Revolution

This episode is part of a special five-part miniseries examining James Madison's role in the American Revolution and the founding of the United States. As part of Mo

Forging the Revolution: Montpelier's Blacksmith Shop and the Hidden Network of the American War

What can 500 pounds of slag reveal about the American Revolution? In this episode, Dr. Katie Crawford-Lackey talks with Dr. Matt Reeves, Montpelier's Director of Arc

Young Madison and the Founding Years

This episode launches a special five-part miniseries examining James Madison's role in the American Revolution and the founding of the United States. Part of Montpel

Consider The Constitution: 2025 Year in Review

In this special year-end episode, Dr. Katie Crawford Lackey looks back at 19 conversations from 2025 with historians, lawyers, constitutional experts, and public servants