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On January 6th, 2021, the world watched in disbelief as rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol  as the results of the Electoral College were being formally presented—and challenged—in Congress. The riots left at least 4 dead, and many others wounded. Robert P. George, Director of the James Madison Program, and Allen C. Guelzo, Director of the James Madison Program's Initiative on Politics and Statesmanship, discuss the significance of this attack on the Capitol, the state of the Nation, and what Republicans and Democrats alike can do to fix this.

What is the relationship between America's Founding principles and her foreign policy? What are unalienable rights and how do we know they exist? How have other nations responded to the final report of the U.S. Department of State's Commission on Unalienable Rights? Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo and Mary Ann Glendon, Chair of the Commission on Unalienable Rights, join Madison's Notes to answer these questions and others.  Final Report of the Commission on Unalienable Rights: https://www.state.gov/report-of-the-commission-on-unalienable-rights/ 

What made George Washington the "greatest man in the world"? What is his legacy outside the United States? What did "honor" mean to America's Founding Fathers, and why was it so important to them? Craig Bruce Smith, author of American Honor: The Creation of the Nation's Ideals During the Revolutionary Era, joins the show to answer these questions and others.  American Honor: https://www.amazon.com/American-Honor-Creation-Nations-Revolutionary/dp/1469638835  Craig's piece for The Hill: https://thehill.com/opinion/civil-rights/506980-a-monument-for-the-world 

Sergiu Klainerman is the Eugene Higgins Professor of Mathematics at Princeton University. Born in communist Romania, he sees disturbing parallels between life in the Soviet Bloc and the "soft totalitarianism" or "pre-totalitarianism" taking root in America. He joins the show to discuss these parallels and reflect on Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's 1978 speech, "A World Split Apart." "Reflections on Solzhenitsyn’s Harvard Address": https://quillette.com/2020/10/24/reflections-on-solzhenitsyns-harvard-address/  "How to Fight the Enemies of Academic Freedom": https://quillette.com/2020/08/10/how-to-fight-the-enemies-of-academic-freedom/  "Princeton's President Is Wrong. The University Is Not Systemically Racist": https://www.newsweek.com/princetons-president-wrong-university-not-systemically-racist-opinion-1530480  "Live Not by Lies": https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/03064220408537357  "A World Split Apart": https://www.solzhenitsyncenter.org/a-world-split-apart 

On November 19, 1863, Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address. Allen C. Guelzo, Director of the James Madison Program's Initiative on Politics and Statesmanship, joins the show to discuss the legacy of the Gettysburg Address and what Lincoln might say to us today. Guelzo's 2013 article for The New York Times: https://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/11/17/lincolns-sound-bite-have-faith-in-democracy/  Guelzo's 2013 piece in the Claremont Review of Books: https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/a-new-birth-of-freedom/ 

Are transgenderism and feminism at odds? Are we living through another sexual revolution? Why have conservatives been so unsuccessful in fighting the "culture wars"? Scott Yenor, Professor of Political Science at Boise State University, joins Madison's Notes to answer these questions and discuss his new book, "The Recovery of Family Life: Exposing the Limits of Modern Ideologies."  The Recovery of Family Life: https://www.amazon.com/Recovery-Family-Life-Exposing-Ideologies/dp/1481312820  The False Science of Feminism: https://americanmind.org/salvo/the-false-science-of-feminism/ 

Could totalitarianism take root in America? What does it mean to "live not by lies"? Rod Dreher is a senior editor at The American Conservative and the author of several books, including The Benedict Option. He joins the show to answer these questions and discuss his new book, Live Not by Lies: A Manual for Christian Dissidents. Live Not by Lies: https://www.amazon.com/Live-Not-Lies-Christian-Dissidents/dp/0593087399  Solzhenitsyn's 1974 essay: https://archive.org/stream/LiveNotByLies/Live%20Not%20By%20Lies_djvu.txt 

Is the Supreme Court too powerful? When did judicial nominations become so contentious? Should we have term limits for judges and justices?Ilya Shapiro '99, Director of the Cato Institute's Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies, joins the show to answer these questions and discuss his new book, Supreme Disorder: Judicial Nominations and the Politics of America's Highest Court. Supreme Disorder: https://www.amazon.com/Supreme-Disorder-Judicial-Nominations-Politics/dp/1684510562 "The Brilliance Lives Loudly Within Her": https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/the-brilliance-lives-loudly-within-her 

Is America still a democracy? What is at stake in the 2020 presidential election? Michael Anton, Lecturer at Hillsdale College and Senior Fellow at the Claremont Institute, joins the show to answer these questions and discuss his new book, "The Stakes: America at the Point of No Return." The Flight 93 Election: https://claremontreviewofbooks.com/digital/the-flight-93-election/ The Stakes: America at the Point of No Return: https://www.amazon.com/Stakes-2020-Election-Point-Return/dp/1684510619 

Amy Coney Barrett is a judge on the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2019, Judge Barrett delivered the James Madison Program's Annual Walter F. Murphy Lecture in American Constitutionalism. The lecture was entitled "The Constitution as Our Story." The Constitution as Our Story (Video): https://jmp.princeton.edu/events/constitution-our-story 

What are the "great books"? What makes them great? Is the cultivation of an intellectual life especially important to citizens of a democratic republic? Zena Hitz, Tutor at St. John's College, joins the show to discuss all this and more! Lost in Thought: https://www.amazon.com/Lost-Thought-Hidden-Pleasures-Intellectual/dp/0691178712

What did Abraham Lincoln read? What makes him "America's greatest defender"? What should we do with Confederate memorials? Lucas Morel, the John K. Boardman, Jr. Professor of Politics at Washington and Lee University, joins the show to discuss all this and more!  "Why Lee should remain a namesake of my university": https://richmond.com/opinion/columnists/lucas-e-morel-column-why-lee-should-remain-a-namesake-of-my-university/article_5d6664f6-00e0-55e7-b567-0a10ae5b3403.html Lincoln and the American Founding: https://www.amazon.com/Lincoln-American-Founding-Concise-Library/dp/0809337851 

Alexandra DeSanctis is a Staff Writer for National Review and a Visiting Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center. She joins Madison's Notes to discuss abortion, the Pro-Life movement in America, the state of free speech in journalism, and more!  Bari Weiss' letter of resignation: https://www.bariweiss.com/resignation-letter

In this special episode of Madison's Notes, Robert P. George and Cornel West urge Americans to be honest and courageous in confronting the challenges we face as a Nation.  In The Boston Globe: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/07/15/opinion/unite-country-we-need-honesty-courage/

How did the American Founders understand religious liberty? Why should students study the Founding? What is the relationship between the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution? Dr. Vincent Phillip Muñoz, the Tocqueville Associate Professor of Political Science and Concurrent Associate Professor of Law at the University of Notre Dame, joins Madison's Notes to discuss these questions and more!  Dr. Muñoz's 2020 Test Lectures: https://jmp.princeton.edu/events/religious-liberty-and-american-founding-natural-rights-and-original-meaning-first-0#video 

On July 4, 2000, the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions was founded at Princeton University. Robert P. George, Director of the James Madison Program, returns to Madison's Notes to discuss how and why the Madison Program came to be. After the conversation with Professor George you'll hear Allen C. Guelzo, Director of the Madison Program's Initiative on Politics and Statesmanship, read Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address—a fitting and proper way to celebrate the 4th of July.  Make a gift: https://jmp.princeton.edu/gift 

Bill McClay is the G. T. and Libby Blankenship Chair in the History of Liberty at the University of Oklahoma and the author of Land of Hope: An Invitation to the Great American Story. He joins the show to discuss Land of Hope, the state of the history profession, nationalism, the New York Times' 1619 Project, and more. Land of Hope: https://www.encounterbooks.com/books/land-of-hope/#:~:text=A%20Refreshing%20Vision%20of%20American%20History&text=In%20Land%20of%20Hope%3A%20An,most%20popular%20U.S.%20history%20textbooks. Bill McClay's interview with Daniel Cullen: https://jackmillercenter.org/daniel-cullen-wilfred-mcclay-interview-land-of-hope/ 

What is the Administrative State? Where did it come from? Is it a cause for concern or celebration? Adam J. White, Resident Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute and Director of the C. Boyden Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School, answers these questions and more. "A Republic, If We Can Keep It" https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/02/a-republic-if-we-can-keep-it/605887/ 

Robert P. George is McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton University. In this inaugural episode of Madison's Notes, he speaks about his childhood, his decision to enter academia, the purpose of the university, academic freedom, and more.