Tom Ginsburg on Whether America Should Adopt a New Constitution

The Good Fight

Yascha Mounk

News

4.6 • 907 Ratings

🗓️ 9 September 2025

⏱️ 65 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Tom Ginsburg is the Leo Spitz Distinguished Service Professor of International Law, Professor of Political Science, and Faculty Director of the Malyi Center for the Study of Institutional and Legal Integrity and the Forum for Free Inquiry and Expression at the University of Chicago. In this week’s conversation, Yascha Mounk and Tom Ginsburg explore different approaches to constitutions in the United States, Europe, and beyond, the advantages and disadvantages of the U.S. political system, and how to protect the First Amendment. Polarization is at an all-time high. It can feel daunting—perhaps even misguided—to engage in meaningful dialogue with those holding starkly different views. What does it mean to champion pluralism in such a moment? Persuasion’s new series on the future of pluralism, generously supported by the Arthur Vining Davis Foundations, features longform essays and podcast interviews that make the case for civic dialogue and highlight inspiring examples of it in practice. You can find past installments here. Email: [email protected] Podcast production by Mickey Freeland. Connect with us! Spotify | Apple | Google X: @Yascha_Mounk & @JoinPersuasion YouTube: Yascha Mounk, Persuasion LinkedIn: Persuasion Community Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	There are some things you should always check, like the hygiene rating on your local takeaway,
0:06.2	the setting on your razor, and whether the party actually is fancy dress.
0:11.1	The other thing you should check is your Experian credit report, especially if you're looking to borrow money.
0:17.2	It lets you understand what lenders see, so you can increase your chances of getting the best deals.
0:22.8	It's dead easy to check it and completely free.
0:26.6	See it in seconds. Download the Experian app today.
0:30.3	If we were to have a new constitutional convention, which is allowed under Article 5 of the Constitution, we could have a new convention.
0:37.1	Imagine what we'd spend our time talking about.
0:39.1	It would be about abortion and bathrooms and things like this.
0:43.4	We wouldn't be fixing the fundamental problems of American governance.
0:47.5	And so I do think it would be a bad idea for us to to launch another effort.
0:55.6	And now the good fight with Yasha Monk.
1:04.4	Democratic institutions are under attack in many countries.
1:07.8	And one of the big questions is, to what extent the right kind of constitution
1:11.6	can help to provide a bulwark against the attacks of demagogues and other authoritarian aspirants?
1:21.8	Emmanuel Kant had the ambition of designing a constitution that would allow even a race of devils
1:27.3	to self-govern. Well, what elements of a constitution that would allow even a race of devils to self-govern. Well, what
1:29.2	elements of a constitution really do actually help to shore up institutions? What elements of
1:36.6	constitutions around the world might have helped to explain why those countries' democratic
1:42.1	systems collapsed? What changes should we make in the United
1:44.9	States? And would it be a good idea to scrap the U.S. Constitution and try to write it from
1:50.5	scratch? Well, there's nobody better to ask about these questions than Tom Ginsburg.
	...

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