Jill Lepore

intellectual consistency among political actors in this story right like when when the court is conservative as it was in the progressive era progressives are all about amendment and attacking the court and bemoaning judicial supremacy or labeling it that and bemoaning it

And then for the middle decades of the 20th century, when the court is liberal, conservatives are really mad about judicial activism and judicial supremacy.

But then once conservatives get control of the court again, no, then they're pretty happy with the court having all this power.

And then now liberals are upset with the court having the power.

It's important to just note that there's no one who escapes that trap.

I am an archive rat.

Historians are in two varieties.

There's archive rats and then there's people who make sweeping generalizations.

I'm an archive rat.

I work really hard to say something sweeping, but I just could spend so much time with Birch Bayh.

So he's this guy from Indiana, a Democrat, very, very handsome, charming.

He's kind of like the Kennedy of the Midwest.

And people thought he was going to be a presidential contender.

In fact, he sought the Democratic nomination, I think, in 68.

briefly uh but he he does have a law degree and so when he gets to senate as a young senator uh jim eastland who the big mississippi segregationist who's chair of the senate judiciary committee puts him on this graveyard committee which is the senate judiciary committee's subcommittee on constitutional amendments and it's like where ideas go to die like

You have an idea for an amendment and it goes to that committee and nothing's ever going to come out of that committee.

But he's a very ambitious guy, though.

So he's like, I don't know, maybe we should hold some hearings on some stuff.

And Aislinn's like, dude, do not hold hearings on these things.

It'll kill you.