Civic Virtue, and Why It Matters

We the People

National Constitution Center

News Commentary, News, History

4.6 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 14 February 2020

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In these polarized times and in the wake of impeachment – how can we be a better “We the People”? Host Jeffrey Rosen is joined by Margaret Taylor of Lawfare and Adam White of AEI to discuss the values that our founders thought were necessary to uphold American government, and whether or not the American people and our representatives are living up to them. The episode centers around the idea of civic virtue: a political philosophy term which describes personal qualities associated with the effective functioning of the civil and political order, or the preservation of its values and principles (per Encyclopedia Britannica.) Margaret Taylor and Adam White are authors of pieces for The Battle for the Constitution – a partnership between The National Constitution Center and The Atlantic which features essays exploring the constitutional issues at the center of American life. Check out the page here: https://www.theatlantic.com/projects/battle-constitution/ Questions or comments about the podcast? Email us at podcast@constitutioncenter.org.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I'm Jeffrey Rosen, president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, and welcome
0:08.0	to We The People, a weekly show of constitutional debate.
0:11.6	The National Constitution Center is a nonpartisan nonprofit chartered by Congress to increase awareness
0:18.0	and understanding of the Constitution among the American people.
0:22.1	And in fulfillment of that inspiring mission,
0:25.0	the National Constitution Center has a wonderful new collaboration
0:28.0	with the Atlantic magazine.
0:30.0	We've created the Battle for the Constitution.
0:32.0	It's a website that features essays
0:34.4	exploring the constitutional issues at the center of American life representing
0:38.8	scholars and thought leaders of all perspectives.
0:43.0	And this week I'm joined by the authors of two recent great pieces on the site, Margaret
0:48.6	Taylor and Adam White.
0:50.6	We will discuss civic virtue and the state of the American Republic.
0:57.0	What did the founders understand civic virtue to be?
1:02.0	How can citizens practice the habits of virtue and what are its
1:06.5	prospects in a post-impeachment highly polarized society.
1:12.8	Margaret Taylor is a fellow in governance studies
1:15.7	at the Brookings Institution and senior editor
1:17.9	and counsel at law fair.
1:19.7	Previously, she was the Democratic Chief Counsel
1:22.4	and Deputy Staff Director for the Senate Foreign
	...

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