Civitas Symposium: Statesmanship and the American Presidency
Who are our American statesmen, and what can we learn from them?
How should we think about statesmanship and presidential power? As Steven Hayward observes in this symposium, we are uncomfortable with even acknowledging that a category of statesmanship should exist. Statesmanship implies discriminating judgment about character, prudence, magnanimity, and justice. The modern liberal mind can't even, as the kids say. Yet we are also stuck with executive leadership, even in a modern constitutional republic. So, who are our American statesmen, and what can we learn from them?
We can draw from different sources to formulate answers to these questions. How did the Founders of American constitutionalism think about character and executive power? Do the progressives provide better sources of thinking about this issue? How would institutions influence or condition executive decision-making? What about the size of government today and the exercise of presidential power?
To answer these questions and more, we've invited the following contributors:
Joseph Bessette and Gary J. Schmitt “Character and the American Presidency: A View From the Founding"
Steven Hayward “Taming the 21st Century Prince"
Yuval Levin “Big Government Statesmanship"
Constitutionalism
Epstein & Yoo: Amicus Brief in Supreme Court of Maryland
Civitas Senior Research Fellows Richard Epstein and John Yoo, alongside the Mountain States Legal Foundation, filed an amicus brief in the Supreme Court of Maryland.
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Religious Exemptions?: What the Free Exercise Clause Means
A conversation among three religious liberty scholars on the Free Exercise Clause’s original meaning.
Why Trump’s ‘Emergency’ Tariffs Won’t Fly
The trade deficit isn’t a sudden surprise, short in duration, and great in harm: the usual characteristics of an emergency.
Democracy in Britain: The Lords’ Work
Part 2: How the “hereditary peers” enhance lawmaking and support the soft power of the UK.
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Sen. Warren's Hollow Call for Fed Accountability
The question is not whether the Fed should be more accountable, but accountable to whom.
The Failed Lower Court Revolt
As Justice Gorsuch explained, “Lower court judges may sometimes disagree with this Court’s decisions, but they are never free to defy them.”
