What Was the Constitutional Convention?

This week, as the 2024 Presidential election draws nearer, the possibility of a second Trump term looms larger, and the very question of what is and isn’t constitutional becomes increasingly divisive, I want to go all the way back to where it all began. So in this episode, I want to know… what was the Constitutional Convention?

Special Guests:

• Emma Long, Associate Professor of American History and Politics and Head of the Department of American Studies at the University of East Anglia
• Frank Cogliano, a Professor of American History at Edinburgh University and author of ‘Revolutionary America, 1763-1815’

Highlights from this episode:

(02:27) What do we mean by the Constitutional Convention?

(05:20) The Articles of Confederation

(14:16) A pretty short time to write an entire Constitution?

(17:36) The Bill of Rights and why they were inevitable

(23:41) Slavery and other Constitutional compromises

(30:37) Present day impact of the 1787 convention with Veep

(36:26) What will it take for another convention to happen?

Additional Resources:

BOOK: Revolutionary America, 1763-1815 by Frank Cogliano

WEBSITE: The Articles of Confederation 

WEBSITE: National Constitution Center, Constitution Drafting Project 

WEBSITE: National Constitutional Center Town Hall, The Constitutional Convention with David Rubenstein

VIDEO: Veep | Tied Election

And if you like this episode, you’ll also love:

What Was the Constitutional Convention?

Why Does the President Only Serve Two Terms?

Is the President Above the Law?

How Are Presidents Elected?

What is the US Constitution?

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