Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories

A Republic, if we can keep it

Part VI: Repairing the Constitution

U.S. Constitution
Douglas Sacha/Getty Images

Breslin is the Joseph C. Palamountain Jr. Chair of Political Science at Skidmore College and author of “A Constitution for the Living: Imagining How Five Generations of Americans Would Rewrite the Nation’s Fundamental Law.”

This is the latest in a series to assist American citizens on the bumpy road ahead this election year. By highlighting components, principles and stories of the Constitution, Breslin hopes to remind us that the American political experiment remains, in the words of Alexander Hamilton, the “most interesting in the world.”


It seems Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has stepped away from the grueling rat race of a presidential campaign to pursue an even higher, and far more difficult, political prize: amending the U.S. Constitution.

I applaud the governor.

Last week, DeSantis announced that he was seeking fundamental constitutional reform in an effort to “hold the U.S. Congress accountable” and “protect the people of Florida from a reckless federal government.” He proposed four amendments: “a balanced federal budget, congressional term limits, equal laws for the public and members of Congress, and line-item veto authority for the President of the United States.” He is no doubt the most visible figure in the last several years to enter the debate about constitutional reform. And the most polarizing.

But he’s not wrong. The Constitution needs an overhaul. There, I said it. The greatest political charter in human history, the one that proved the model for all others and that has, for the most part, altered the entire trajectory of organized government around the world, is in desperate need of repair. The political document most revered, most venerated, and most esteemed by those at home (including me) and those abroad is, frankly, a bit outdated. We could use a few amendments, or better yet a whole new constitutional convention. It’s time. A return to Philadelphia to rewrite the nation’s fundamental law is long overdue.

What’s remarkable is that the Constitution has lasted as long as it has, and that it has been mostly effective — for a large slice of Americans at least — in safeguarding liberty. It has survived numerous wars, including a brutal Civil War where its very principles were questioned. The document has survived serious challenges to its authority by state legislators and governors (including DeSantis) bent on capturing power. It has survived alarming, and sometimes sickening, decisions by the courts — Dred Scott, Plessy v. Ferguson, Bowers v. Hardwick, Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization. It has survived political scandals, malpractice, high crimes and misdemeanors, disloyalty, and treason. And it survived Jan. 6.

Those who wrote and ratified the Constitution were not sure it would, or even should, endure. James Madison was the strongest proponent of durable constitutions and even he worried that these “parchment barriers” were no match for a government that “draws all power into its impetuous vortex.” His lone experience with federal constitutions was the feeble Articles of Confederation. Lasting only eight years, the Articles proved irreparably broken. Just ask those who tried to vanquish Mr. Shays.

And then there were those who actively opposed abiding constitutions, most famously Thomas Jefferson. “The earth belongs in usufruct to the living,” Jefferson insisted. To be bound by the political visions and values of a prior generation is just another form of tyranny.

“Some men look at constitutions with sanctimonious reverence,” he claimed, “and deem them like the arc [sic] of the covenant, too sacred to be touched. They ascribe to the men of the preceding age a wisdom more than human, and suppose what they did to be beyond amendment.”

His solution was simple: “let us provide in our constitution for its revision at stated periods. ... Each generation is as independent as the one preceding. ... It has then a right to choose for itself the form of government it believes most promotive of its own happiness.”

Jefferson was never able to persuade his contemporaries of the merits of constitutional “revision at stated periods.” His argument was more convincing at the state level — 20 or so states now have built-in constitutional mechanisms for periodic revision. What is more, the remarkable work of Zachary Elkins, Tom Ginsburg and James Melton at the Comparative Constitutions Project indicates that the average lifespan of constitutions across the globe is a modest 17 years. Indeed, Jefferson’s constitutional influence has been greater abroad than it has been at home.

That said, a Jeffersonian-like call for amending the U.S. Constitution has reached a fever pitch. These appeals have happened in academic journals, to be sure. But they’re also surfacing in mainstream political outlets like The Atlantic, Vox, The New Republic and Democracy: A Journal of Ideas. Those outside the Beltway are increasingly questioning the merits of our current constitutional design. Notable academics have written books on the subject. The New York Times recently ran a series on the most influential reforms to our political system. The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia commissioned legal scholars from the libertarian, conservative and liberal persuasions to draft their own constitutions for the 21st century. The push for constitutional reform has even infused pop culture. Consider Chris Rock’s 2020 “Saturday Night Live” monologue in which he insisted we need to “renegotiate our relationship to our government” and come up with a “whole new [constitutional] system”:

Chris Rock monologue - SNLwww.youtube.com

The main question then is whether DeSantis will find any traction. Article V of the Constitution stipulates that revisions to the text can follow two procedural pathways: either two-thirds of both houses of Congress can propose amendments or two-thirds of the states can apply for a constitutional convention. The Floridian appears to be taking the latter route. Either way, he faces a steep and jagged uphill climb. Even if successful in convincing 33 more states to get on board with his plan, DeSantis would then have to induce three-quarters of the states to ratify any constitutional changes. That will not be simple.

But the conversation about constitutional reform needs to continue. As America approaches its semiquincentennial on July 4, 2026, and then, 11 years later, the 250th anniversary of its constitutional birth, we are right to wonder about particular provisions of our commanding charter. The woefully undemocratic Senate, the troubling Electoral College, the curiously short two-year House term, the archaic life tenure for federal court judges, the unenumerated right to privacy ... these are just a few of the Constitution’s many shortcomings.

There are more, of course, and the political environment is just going to get even more complex. We have to face the prospect that a Constitution for the 18th century may not be a Constitution for the 21st. In the end, Americans would be wise to heed that possibility.

Read More

Thoughts on Gathering Storms

Category 4 Major Hurricane Helene approaching the Big Bend of Florida. At the same time the Pacific Category 3 Hurricane John making landfall on southwestern Mexico.

Getty Images, FrankRamspott

Thoughts on Gathering Storms

The North American hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30. The season, therefore, is hard upon us, even as the federal government is not prepared for what it may bring.

For the past 45 years, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been responsible for planning and providing national emergency relief to areas in the path of or affected by catastrophic storms the season often brings. The National Weather Service (NWS) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), both of which are embedded in FEMA, provide critical information that FEMA used in its storm preparation process.

Keep ReadingShow less
AI Is a Weapon Pointed at America. Our Best Defense Is Education.

Elementary students raising their hands to answer the teacher's question in a class in the robotics mechanical and electric classroom.

Getty Images, Cravetiger

AI Is a Weapon Pointed at America. Our Best Defense Is Education.

Foreign adversaries are already deploying artificial intelligence as a weapon against America, not just on distant battlefields, but within our social media feeds, news sources, and critical infrastructure. AI-powered disinformation campaigns designed to sow chaos and division, sophisticated cyber attacks – these are no longer future hypotheticals; they are clear and present dangers. America's most significant vulnerability in this new era isn't necessarily a lack of technology but a lack of understanding among our own citizens. An unprepared public is fertile ground for manipulation and a weak link in our national defense. To secure our future, we must urgently equip Americans with the knowledge to navigate an AI-shaped world.

This isn't just about recognizing deepfakes. National resilience requires citizens who understand the basics of how algorithms shape their information environment and can think critically about AI's influence. Furthermore, our national security apparatus itself desperately needs more AI-savvy personnel. The Department of Defense faces alarming shortages in its cyber and tech workforce – tens of thousands of critical positions remain vacant – hindering our ability to develop, deploy, and defend against AI capabilities. Simultaneously, our economic edge depends on fostering widespread innovation and adoption of AI, which is bottlenecked by a lack of skilled workers across industries. Simply put, AI literacy is now a cornerstone of both national defense and economic competitiveness.

Keep ReadingShow less
Will Medicaid Cuts in the GOP Budget Hurt Millions of Americans?
A patient with a medical professional.
Getty Images, Halfpoint Images

Will Medicaid Cuts in the GOP Budget Hurt Millions of Americans?

Republican Senator Joni Ernst recently faced an unexpectedly hostile audience at a town hall in Iowa, where her constituents jeered as she defended the GOP’s proposed cuts to Medicaid—a program providing healthcare to 71 million low-income Americans, nearly 20% of the population.

Ernst attempted to defend the Medicaid cuts contained in what President Donald Trump has dubbed his “big, beautiful bill.” The cuts have been estimated by independent experts to slice about $880 billion over 10 years from Medicaid. The bill, she insists, will not cut anything from truly deserving Americans, it will only cut waste and fraud because there are millions receiving Medicaid benefits who are not really eligible, such as illegal immigrants, or who are otherwise undeserving.

Keep ReadingShow less
English as the New Standard: Understanding Language Policies Under Trump

Writing "learn english"

Getty Images//Stock Photo

English as the New Standard: Understanding Language Policies Under Trump

English as the Official Language of the U.S.

On March 1st, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order declaring English as the official language of the United States. This marks the first time the country has ever designated an official language in its nearly 250-year history. Currently, thirty states have already established English as their official language, with Alaska and Hawaii recognizing several native languages as official state languages in addition to English.

Keep ReadingShow less