Commentary
Beginning January 26, 2026, I launched a multi-week public-education initiative to bring clear, plain-English explanations of the Constitution and presidential power to a wider public audience.
In addition to the short-form videos archived in the Video Library, I also publish written commentary and short essays addressing the same themes: the historical limits on executive power, the Supreme Court’s role in preserving constitutional balance, and the lessons that two centuries of case law offer for contemporary civic life.
These pieces are written for a general audience and are intended to complement the video series by providing additional context, historical detail, and analytical depth in an accessible written form.
Each entry below links to the original post.
“A Republic — If You Can Keep It” Why Separation of Powers Matters The Presidency - A Powerful Office Bound by Law
Benjamin Franklin’s famous statement upon completion of the Constitution Because concentrated power is the greatest threat to liberty Why the presidency is powerful — but never law-free
January 26, 2026 January 27, 2026 January 28, 2026
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The Judiciary’s Constitutional Role Judging Power — Not Personalities Arresting Journalists and the Constitution
Why the judiciary may be the most essential to preserving liberty Not confusing personal views with constitutional judgment What the arrest of journalist Don Lemon says of presidential power
January 29, 2026 January 30, 2026 January 31, 2026
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Presidential Power and Immigration Enforcement Presidential Speech ≠ Presidential Power Can a President Suspend the Constitution?
February 2, 2026 February 3, 2026 February 4, 2026
What is a president’s proper use of ICE under the Constitution Why a president’s words alone do not exercise power How emergencies reveal the strength of constitutional commitment
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Can a President Cancel Congressional Elections? Why America Needed George Washington When Congress Stops Checking the President
February 5, 2026 February 6, 2026 February 9, 2026
The Constitution’s answer to the question The nation’s first president chose restraint over power The danger of one-party control of government
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Why Martial Law Is Not a Presidential Switch Why Founders Limited the Presidency Can a President Declare Control Over a Country
February 10, 2026 February 11, 2026 February 12, 2026
It’s not a button a president can simply press How the Founders carefully engineered the presidency Presidential authority depends on legal authorization - not personal assertion
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Can Troops Patrol U.S. Cities? Can Presidents Rename National Symbols? What “Faithfully Execute the Law” Means
February 13, 2026 February 16, 2026 February 17, 2026
The constitutional tradition has been very restrictive Such symbols are not matters of personal presidential discretion A president is the executor of the law, not its author or editor
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Is a President Above the Law? Disagreement Built the Constitution A President’s Authority to Use Lethal Force
February 18, 2026 February 19, 2026 February 20, 2026
The rule of law applies at the highest levels of government But the Founders agreed on what mattered most The authority to use lethal force does not arise from office alone
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Tariffs - A President Reined In Can a President Defy the Supreme Court? When Presidents Overreach on Imprisonment
February 23, 2026 February 25, 2026 February 26, 2026
A textbook example of how our constitutional system works What has been the history of this for nearly 240 years? Presidents do not have unchecked power to imprison people
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Why the Founders Chose One President Why Majority Rule Isn’t Enough War Powers and the Constitution
February 27, 2026 March 2, 2026 March 3, 2026
History shows plural executives do not work Why majorities can be just as tyrannical as kings Who has the authority to take the nation to war?
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Term Limits for Federal Judges? Is America on the Verge of Collapse? What Courts Can — and Cannot — Do
March 4, 2026 March 5, 2026 March 6, 2026
Can Congress do this with ordinary legislation? No guarantees — but history would suggest otherwise The judiciary does not sit as a super-legislature
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Why Congress Rarely Declares War Why Presidents Aren’t Kings Presidential Power Abroad — And Its Limits
March 9, 2026 March 10, 2026 March 12, 2026
The Framers expected Congress to play the central role The Framers did not create a national ruler Deference, yes — but not unlimited authority
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The Character of a Nation When Can a President Be Impeached? Can a President Forgive Federal Crimes?
March 13, 2026 March 16, 2026 March 17, 2026
Political institutions reflect the people they govern The constitutional mechanism for serious abuses of power And are any limits placed on such a power?
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Why No President Has Unlimited Power Presidents Don’t Appoint Justices Alone Why Is a President’s Term Four Years?
March 18, 2026 March 19, 2026 March 20, 2026
The separation of powers is designed to prevent such power The arrangement reflects a central principle of the Constitution The Framers were trying to balance two competing concerns