Keeping up with the Trump administration 2.0 is like drinking from a firehose.From dropping bombs on Iran — without Congress weighing in — to mass deportations by masked ICE agents, to DOGE taking a chainsaw to federal institutions — it’s a lot.A looming, ever present question: is any of it constitutional?Our first attempt at answering this question took place at a Civil Dialogues town hall in St. Louis, MO on March 6, 2025.Today’s podcast moves that conversation forward with two of the panelists, Jay Sexton, Director of the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy, and Steve Davis, senior legal fellow at Pacific Legal Foundation and member of the Federalist Society.This was recorded the day before the U.S. joined Israel in its war against Iran.Engage in Civil Dialogue With UsAfter watching or listening to this episode, we hope you’ll join us for the next installment of “The People, The President & The Constitution: Your Questions Answered” on July 22nd.That same topic was so well received in St. Louis that we’ve decided to take it on the road to as many cities as will have us. Next stop, the Kansas City Public Library.We’ll talk about what’s happening in real time, how and why Americans must engage with each other and in our democracy, and the steps to move forward together for the future of the country. And, of course, we’ll address as many of your questions as possible.Jay Sexton returns as a panelist, along with Kathy Kiely, veteran journalist and professor at the University of Missouri.They’ll be joined by Woody Cozad, attorney and former chair of the Missouri Republican Party, and Quinn Sheppard, a 2024 summa cum laude Mizzou graduate with degrees in Constitutional Democracy and History.My Civil Dialogues co-founder, Jean Becker, will provide historical perspective, I will moderate the panel, and together we’ll facilitate audience Q&A.The town hall takes place at 6pm CST on July 22nd at the Kansas City Public Library. Register here. If you can’t attend in person, a live stream will also be available at CivilDialogues.us.Why Partnerships MatterJean and I could not do this work without the support of our partners. Thank you to the Kinder Institute on Constitutional Democracy and the Kansas City Public Library for hosting our upcoming event. This is likely the first in a series of town halls we will do at the KCPL. Stay tuned for more on that.A big thanks to Missouri Humanities for hosting our St. Louis event. If you missed it, watch the recording here. It’s well worth your time.We’d love to take our road show to your part of the country. If you’re interested in partnering or you have a good lead for us, please reach out here.Finally, If you haven’t already, please opt-in to stay up to date on all things Civil Dialogues, subscribe to the podcast on Substack, share it with your friends, and let us know your thoughts and ideas. We want to hear from you.Your voice matters. Especially now…www.ourvoicesmatterpodcast.comwww.lorellemedia.com
Civil DialoguesThis podcast is devoted to empowering us all to better understand each other's differences...one story at a time. Emmy Award-winning journalist, Linda Lorelle, guides guests through insightful, unexpected conversations that reveal our common humanity. This show is not about politics per se; it is about finding a way to reclaim civility in the context of the contentious times in which we live, by sharing our personal and professional stories, in hopes that others might find a glimpse of themselves.
