From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jul 28, 2026 On July 16, President Donald Trump addressed the nation to push the SAVE America Act and make our elections safe. In his speech, Trump did not repeat his claim that he won the 2020 election, but he did declassify documents showing Chinese influence in … Continue reading 1856 election demonstrates strengths, weaknesses of our democracy
Tag: politics
Charity, refugees & our Constitution
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Immigration has become one of the hottest topics of debate in our country, especially as we have accepted refugees from several war-torn nations. Part of this debate centers on how to fund refugees who often arrive with very little to their name and are in need of … Continue reading Charity, refugees & our Constitution
Removing a Senator
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jul 19, 2026 Two important stories from last week were the hospitalization of U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell and the death of U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham. While both events are serious and sorrowful, what is interesting from the perspective of this column is how our Constitution addresses each … Continue reading Removing a Senator
Wolford v. Lopez rightly arms permit holders, business owners
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jul 12, 2026 Last week, I wrote about the birthright citizenship case, one of several major Supreme Court decisions handed down over the past few weeks. Today, I want to look at what is probably the second most controversial decision, and one surrounded by a great deal … Continue reading Wolford v. Lopez rightly arms permit holders, business owners
Constitution 101: Bankruptcy Clause
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. It is interesting that our Founders combined naturalization and bankruptcy into a single clause in the Constitution but they did so because with both issues they needed to move away from 13 different laws and create a nationally agreed upon set up rules. Article I, Section VIII, … Continue reading Constitution 101: Bankruptcy Clause
Birthright Citizenship
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jul 7, 2026 The past three weeks have been busy ones for the Supreme Court as it has issued decisions on several important cases, but none more significant than Trump v. Barbara, which struck down President Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship. Since the passage … Continue reading Birthright Citizenship
The Supreme Court should be above politics
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jul 5, 2026 The last couple of weeks have been important ones for the Supreme Court as it has released several of its more important and controversial decisions. While I am going to discuss some of these cases in the near future, I first want to say … Continue reading The Supreme Court should be above politics
‘From the consent of the governed’
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Most people think of the Declaration of Independence as the founding of America, but in many ways that is not true. Just because we declared it so, did not make it true. We first had to win a war against the greatest military power in the history … Continue reading ‘From the consent of the governed’
Endowed by their Creator
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. Jun 21, 2026 We are just two weeks away from celebrating the 250th anniversary of our founding document and the creation of the United States. While the U.S. Constitution is our law, the Declaration of Independence is our purpose and, in many ways, our goal. With so … Continue reading Endowed by their Creator
Trusting in elections from Grover Cleveland to today
From the Lawton Constitution By James Finck, Ph.D. On Dec. 12, 1889, former President Grover Cleveland addressed the Boston Merchants’ Association. Despite winning the popular vote, Cleveland had lost reelection a year earlier and he believed, at least in part, that voter fraud and political manipulation contributed to his defeat. It wasn’t that the election … Continue reading Trusting in elections from Grover Cleveland to today
Historically Speaking 