In November, ARI’s director of legal studies, Steve Simpson, will be on ARI's “Road to a Free Society” tour. Across the country he will be giving a talk titled “Cronyism, Corruption and Government Power.” Is there any truth to the claims that our government is corrupt and cronyism rampant? In his talk, Mr. Simpson will argue that there is something to the issues of “cronyism,” but not in the way that most people think.
“In Europe, charters of liberty have been granted by power. America has set the example . . . of charters of power granted by liberty.”
James Madison wrote these words in 1792, five years after the Constitution began its journey toward ratification by the states. Today marks the 227th anniversary of that beginning — the signing of the Constitution by the 39 delegates to the Philadelphia convention. Madison’s statement is one of my favorites because it conveys, more than any other quote I can think of, the proper relationship between individuals and government, which is a key part of the profound moral significance of the Constitution and the government it created.
Freedom of speech is under siege. Not by the “amplified” voices of billionaires and corporations, but by the sundry spokesmen for “the public” demanding that government should have the power to silence individuals via campaign finance laws.
ARI announces its new summer legal fellowship, an internship program that allows law students to work alongside ARI’s policy intellectuals. Legal fellows will research and write on law and policy issues, working with Steve Simpson, director of legal studies, and other ARI intellectuals.
Michael Kinsley has a very sensible take on the Supreme Court’s McCutcheon decision that is particularly notable because he refuses to join the chorus of unfocused, hysterical complaints about money in politics emanating from many of his colleagues on the left.