The framers of the Constitution designed a system of government in 1787 that distributed power among three branches—legislative, executive, and judicial. Having just overthrown a king, the framers did ...

The U.S. Constitution is among the oldest constitutions in the world but also one of the most difficult to amend. Jill Lepore, Harvard professor of history and law, explains why in We the People, the ...

I recently made a pilgrimage to the National Archives in Washington, D.C., to see the United States Constitution — the one that George Washington and 38 other Founders signed with a goose quill 238 ...

Each September 17, our nation pauses to recognize Constitution Day, commemorating the signing of the United States Constitution in 1787. It is a day not just for lawyers, judges, or politicians–it is ...

Jill Lepore's history of the Constitution includes a colorful cast of characters and makes a case for it as a living document that continues to evolve as we evolve. (ClassicStock / Getty Images) ...

The 25th amendment. A few years before JFK was shot, an idealistic young lawyer set out on a mission to convince people something essential was missing from the Constitution: clear instructions for ...

Lepore recites the usual litany of progressive reasons: it’s “outdated,” it encompassed slavery, no women helped write it, etc., often phrasing these in exaggerated terms and even outright falsehoods, ...

In my high school civics class, each student was given a pocket-sized United States Constitution. I carried my copy with me everywhere, thumbing through the pages and searching for answers to homework ...

During our commemoration of Constitution Week, Sept. 17-23, it often is appropriate to remember that the United States Constitution was not our first form of government following the Revolutionary War ...

The Constitution begins “We the people,” not “we the judges.” Lately, there has been a tussle between activist judges and President Trump. Some critics argue that some of these judges are acting as if ...

In "We the People: A History of the U.S. Constitution" (to be published Sept. 16 by Liveright), Harvard professor and New Yorker writer Jill Lepore explores the ongoing struggle to amend America's ...