Our Undemocratic Constitution?

“I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done, than be one of the twenty to follow my own teaching.”

-      The Merchant of Venice I,2; Portia to Nerissa

             Last week I had the pleasure of moderating a discussion between Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and the Hon. Jeffrey Usman, Judge for the Tennessee Court of Appeals. The occasion did not disappoint.

          The event was the meeting of the Harry Phillips American Inns of Court. The theme of the meeting was “Our Undemocratic Constitution.” For our panel, two actors from the Nashville Shakespeare festival joined Judge Usman to hash out the true nature of our Republic, its Constitution, the ever-changing meaning of the word “democracy,” and most importantly, the Constitutional basis for executive power. With the help of Brandon Boyd, my paralegal, we researched and wrote the answers to the questions I asked as the Moderator, based upon the Federalist Papers and other writings of the two founding Fathers. Judge Usman responded eloquently to the dialectic wrangling of two of our most prolific founding fathers, based upon his extensive knowledge from his career as a Constitutional scholar.  A good time was had by all!

            My thanks to actors Brian Russell and Gerald Oliver for their time, talent, and charm, and to Brandon Boyd for his excellent research into the writings of Madison and Hamilton. Judge Usman, should he ever tire of being an appellate judge, may well have a career in improv.