The James Wilson Foundation on Natural Rights and the American Founding

In late July 2018, JWI’s Deputy Director Garrett Snedeker and Intern Gregory Mill shared a discussion with Prof. Joseph Postell, author of the book Bureuacracy in America: The Administrative State and American Constitutionalism (University of Missouri Press, 2017). Prof. Postell is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. Postell has written […]

On October 2nd, the Institute for Religion and Democracy hosted the 8th Annual Diane Knippers Memorial Lecture, featuring Professor Hadley Arkes. The title of the lecture was “Religious Freedom and the Crisis over Conservative Jurisprudence.” You may watch the program below:

Prof. Arkes recently sat down with Mark Bauerlein of First Things to discuss some concerns about recent conservative approaches to the issue of speech. In reacting to intolerance on college campuses, Prof. Arkes argues that conservatives, including in some opinions of the Supreme Court, have veered into moral relativism, defending any kind of speech as […]

With the testimonies of Judge Brett Kavanaugh and Prof. Christine Blasey Ford looming, Prof. Hadley Arkes makes the case that Prof. Ford’s story warrants close scrutiny, including rigorous cross-examinations. Prof. Arkes demonstrates the absurdity and immorality of abstaining from fully investigating Dr. Ford’s background. Judge Kavanaugh’s background has been investigated by the FBI numerous times […]

With heavy hearts, we share Prof. Hadley Arkes’s reflection on the passing of his lifelong friend and James Wilson Senior Scholar, Prof. Daniel Robinson: I write, just past tears, to convey the sad news of the death of my dearest friend of 50 years, Daniel Nicholas Robinson.  Dan died Monday night September 17, on the […]

On August 8th, Prof. Hadley Arkes appeared on The Eric Metaxas Show to discuss a variety of subjects with Mr. Metaxas including the Kavanaugh hearing, the state of American jurisprudence on abortion, natural law and moral reasoning, and Prof. Arkes’s earliest days at Amherst. You’re encouraged to listen to the full interview below.

JWI Affiliated Scholar Justin Dyer recently joined Charles Heller on Liberty Watch Radio to discuss the place of reasoning from the Natural Law in public life, and especially its relevance to the Supreme Court’s debates about the issue of slavery leading up to the Civil War. Professor Dyer fielded questions from callers as well as Mr. […]

In a powerful, sobering essay for Public Discourse, JWI Senior Scholar David Forte takes the occasion of Gerber’s newly named baby of the year to offer a reflection on the natural right to life and the genocidal logic at play in significant segments of the “pro-choice” community. Lucas, a beaming two-year-old, is the company’s first ever […]

With the Supreme Court’s recent decision in NIFLA vs. Becerra (2018), the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy at the end of July, and the President’s nomination of Judge Brett Kavanaugh for the U.S. Supreme Court, many are speculating on what these events mean for future cases that consider freedom of speech and abortion, as well as what […]

With the upcoming hearings over Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh,  Prof. Hadley Arkes makes the case for a different Republican strategy at National Review Online with his latest essay, “Abortion and the Brett Kavanaugh Hearings: A Plan for Senate Republicans.” Prof. Arkes begins by reviewing the traditional Republican playbook: promising to have the nominee keep his […]