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Heeding the Deed, Part 1
Shifts focus from constitutional text to its enactment, analyzing the 1787-1788 ratification as a continental act of free speech and simple majority rule.
Lecture guide · Written by AI from the lecture. For the lecture’s own words, open the Transcript tab.
Examines the unwritten constitutional principle of the enacted constitution, focusing on the historical processes of 1787-1788 rather than literal text alone. It demonstrates how widespread, un-censored free speech and simple majority rule in state ratifying conventions were baked into the constitutional foundation. The speaker then connects these historical foundations to modern governance, arguing that simple majority rule empowers a bare majority of senators to reform the chamber's filibuster rules.
This lecture assumes
Key Takeaways
- Interpreting the Constitution requires looking beyond literal text to how the document was historically enacted as a deed.
- The 1787-1788 ratification process was an unprecedented, continent-wide event characterized by robust and uncensored free speech.
- Article VII required nine states to ratify, and state conventions served as the authentic voice of the people.
- Simple majority rule governed every state ratifying convention, such as New York's 30-27 vote, establishing it as a foundational unwritten principle.
Concepts Explained4
Enacted Constitution—An interpretative technique that looks beyond the literal written text to view the Constitution as a deed, enactment, and historical process of creation and amendment.
Structural argument—An argument that interprets the Constitution as a holistic document ratified as a whole rather than clause by clause.
Majority rule—An unwritten constitutional principle where decisions are made by a simple majority vote of participants.
Filibuster Reform—The effort to alter Senate rules regarding supermajority requirements by appealing to the fundamental unwritten principle of majority rule.
Examples, Proofs & Derivations
Works & Sources Cited7
Primary Document
Declaration of Independence—Founding document of the United States.
Primary Document
Constitution of the United States—Founding supreme law of the United States.
Primary Document
First Amendment—Constitutional amendment protecting freedom of speech.
Case
McCulloch—Supreme Court case used to illustrate John Marshall's interpretive method.
Primary Document
Article 7 of the Constitution—Constitutional article specifying ratification requirements for nine states.