Attorney, writer and political commentator Elie Mystal joins Laverne to talk about the radically conservative United States Supreme Court, the constitutional amendments through history and his eye-opening book, Allow Me To Retort: A Black Guy’s Guide to the Constitution. He explains how the judges’ own personal tastes make the largest impact on decisions and how the right’s unification has reaped a pipeline of conservative judges the left cannot replicate. They also talk about options like stacking the court and term limits to make change, but when it comes down to it, guess what, it’s up to us.

Elie is a frequent media contributor and the justice correspondent at The Nation.

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The U.S. Constitution Amendments mentioned:

1st Amendment = freedom of religion, speech, the press, assembly, and the right to petition the Government for a redress of grievances

2nd Amendment = the right to bear arms

4th Amendment = the right to be protected against unreasonable search and seizure

“Reconstruction Amendments”

13th Amendment (1865) = abolition of slavery

14th Amendment (1868) = US citizenship rights and equal protection of the laws

15th Amendment (1870) = Black men can vote

Links of Interest:

Elie Mystal on The Mehdi Hassan Show (MSNBC via YouTube, 6/29/23)