THE CONSTITUTION STUDY

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Just look at the game of chicken that members of Congress have been playing with DHS funding for the past month and a half. However, unlike with cars, it’s not the politicians who are suffering the consequences, but the American people. Then there are the cities that keep playing chicken with the violent protesters. Especially when politicians refuse...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The first five words of the First Amendment are, “Congress shall make no law…”, that means that the First Amendment only applies to the federal government. And no, contrary to what the Supreme Court has said, the Fourteenth Amendment did not rewrite the First. So if freedom of speech and press are so important, what are we doing to...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Unhappy with the DHS shutdown? Offended that workers at the TSA, FEMA, and Coast Guard are being forced to work without pay while members of Congress, who caused this mess, still get their paycheck? Remember, when you voted for your member of Congress, personally or not, collectively we hired them; they are our employees...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – I warn that freedom stands one generation from extinction and argue it is our duty to teach it. I criticize government schools, political overreach, and unchecked power, urging Americans to study the Constitution, defend liberty, and raise children who understand their rights before those freedoms vanish in our nation today...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Crime appears to reward bad behavior when enforcement fails. Police actions avoid scrutiny under qualified immunity, repeat offenders face minimal consequences, and fraudsters walk away with fines. Citizens, as sovereign, keep reelecting those responsible. The cycle continues, raising urgent questions about accountability, justice, and whether consequences truly exist in today’s system...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – What happens in the courts does not stay in the courts. We the People most often exercise our right to petition the government for a redress of grievances in the courts. But how often do we check in and see how they are doing? Did you know that the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case that will...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Read the Constitution, and you’ll see that the states created the federal government, not the other way around. Washington, D.C., has forgotten that critical fact, and so have our states. However, there are still those working within our states to restore them as overseers of the government of the United States. Here in Tennessee, the Volunteer...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The U.S. Senate is debating the SAVE Act. But half of the act is unconstitutional. Congress can adjust the time, place, and manner of elections, but only for the U.S. House and Senate. The SAVE Act claims to tell the states someone must be a citizen of the US to register to vote, even though each of the fifty states already has that requirement...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – I explore the balance of power among the three branches of the federal government, examining conflicts between executive authority and judicial rulings, questions about enforcing court orders, and how the Constitution shapes disputes when presidential actions and delegated powers face legal challenges in modern governance and constitutional interpretation debates...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – This piece explores the tension between citizens and the government meant to serve them. It questions what happens when public servants overreach, challenge constitutional limits, and pursue conflicting agendas. It also considers the responsibility of the American people to hold leaders accountable and preserve the integrity of a constitutional republic...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Think of how many recent decisions in the District Court were most likely based on an attempt to protect the American people from the so-called evil Donald Trump. How many rights have been trampled in these judges' attempts to protect us from their caricature of the current president? How many government agencies have been created...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Lucy pulls the ball away at the last moment, and Charlie Brown falls flat on his back. I think that’s a great metaphor for the American people. We keep trusting government actors to do the right thing, only to find ourselves flat on our backs, our wallets emptied, and in pain caused by government policies.

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Are you aware that not only have members of Congress settled sexual misconduct allegations with hush money, but that millions of taxpayer dollars were used? If you watch Senate Minority Leader Schumer’s rant about the SAVE Act, could you spot the lies? What about the lie in Maine when they put a convicted mail sexual predator in a women’s prison?

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – We’ve all heard Newton’s Third Law of Motion: for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. But what about the rest of life? In life, for every action there is a reaction, a consequence, but they are not always equal or opposite. Cities like Boston and states like California take action to implement high taxes and...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Politicians and public officials deflect attention from uncomfortable issues, urging people to believe there is “nothing to see.” From election controversies to protests, congressional debates, and bizarre government programs, these moments reveal how distraction, messaging, and political theater often replace accountability when embarrassing problems or contradictions come into...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – It seems just about every time we expect the government to take care of things for us, it turns into an abject failure. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me 10,000 times, and I’m probably an American voter. Ronald Reagan famously said that the nine most terrifying words in the English language are “I’m from the government and I’m here to help.”

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The House Oversight Committee has been busy lately, subpoenaing Attorney General Pam Bondi and issuing reports about Minnesota Governor Walz and Attorney General Ellison, not only knowing about the fraud in their state, but covering it up. What are those in Congress gonna do? Looks like nothing. Republicans in Congress have been promoting the SAVE Act...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – We live in a litigious society. However, what we sometimes find in our judicial system is more legal maneuvering than a search for justice. The Supreme Court said courts should defer to the decisions of so-called immigration courts. I say “so-called” immigration courts because they are not Article III courts but rather departments within the...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Are you prepared to defend your rights? Or are you like a growing number of Americans who are trusting Artificial Intelligence for legal and medical advice? Are you willing to trust your life, or the life of your neighbors, to an autonomous vehicle? Will you let medical associations that have shown themselves to be more and more political determine your health?

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The Supreme Court moves into the decision-heavy phase of its term, bringing key rulings and notable oral arguments into focus. Two stories involving state Attorneys General highlight the importance of watching state-level officials, while updates on the conflict in Iran add broader international context to today’s discussion...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Some claim this is war, others just another military attack. While I’m not here to debate the moral aspects of this action, the constitutional issues are up for grabs here. Did Donald Trump, as President of the United States, have the legal authority to initiate this military engagement? Are we prepared, both in the...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – There’s a parable in the Gospels that reminds us that if we are not humble, we’re likely to be taken down a notch or two. Not only do I think that’s a good lesson in general, I think it’s especially important in today’s climate. Are you familiar with the gospel story of finding a seat at a banquet? Jesus said we should not assume we...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – If you’ve ever watched a magician work, they frequently get you to focus on one place while the trick is done somewhere else. Not so surprisingly, politics works the same way. We focus so much on the circus we call Washington, D.C., that we miss what’s going on in our cities and states. Do you know what’s going on in your state?

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Meanwhile, back at SCOTUS, they claimed that the U.S. Postal Service somehow magically became a sovereign and therefore had immunity. I’d find that hilarious if it weren’t used by the USPS to protect alleged criminal activity. Seeing as the federal government doesn’t legally have sovereign immunity to begin with, I’m not sure how the court could...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Political payback escalates as Susan Rice, Donald Trump, and state officials trade threats and legal battles. From transgender policies and abortion pill disputes to vaccine liability shields, retaliation increasingly drives public life. As revenge replaces reason, Americans watch a system where power, punishment, and politics collide at every level...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – President Trump has not taken his defeat well. I would say it was more like a petulant child not getting the sugary cereal he wanted. He not only expressed his displeasure with those on the court who disagreed with him, but he also called them unpatriotic and their decision un-American. Trump completely ignored both the law and the Constitution...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Like the Rhode Island man who went into a youth hockey game and started shooting. Some outlets acted like this man’s identification as a woman was irrelevant and not even worth mentioning. Others focus so much on it that they exclude all other information. Our unwillingness to speak the truth about the entire LGBTQIA+ agenda is leading us to...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – We’ve all heard the saying that sunlight is the best disinfectant. So if there’s one thing we need in government is more sunlight. If sunlight is the best disinfectant, what are you doing to help spread the sunlight? In large part because We the People have turned over our sunlight duties to others, and as usual, they’ve dropped the ball...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – State governments shape daily life through regulations, lawsuits, and policy decisions that often escape public attention. From energy mandates and vaccine disputes to immigration trends and job losses, citizens confront consequences close to home. Vigilance at state, local, and federal levels remains essential to preserving accountability and freedom for all...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Questions arise as federal agencies, lawmakers, and public institutions face scrutiny over elections, audits, speech, and accountability. Lawsuits, investigations, and political pressure reveal competing motives and civil liberty concerns, challenging citizens to consider how power is exercised and whether oversight protects rights or undermines them in complex democratic public systems...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – We’re in the middle of another partial federal government shutdown because some people in Washington, D.C. would rather play politics and take time away than do their jobs. New York City hired a socialist mayor who thinks our federal immigration laws should follow Islamic law, and that a schizophrenic, knife-wielding person who attacks...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – I’m old enough to have seen the original Star Wars trilogy in theaters. In Return of the Jedi, the emperor tells Luke, You will pay the price for your lack of vision.” Sadly, the American people are paying the price for our lack of vision. The Trump administration recently reversed an Obama administration decision that had found certain “greenhouse gases” to be dangerous...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – They’re considering legislation to discriminate against Muslims, banning Sharia law in U.S. Court systems. The House passed the “SAVE America Act,” half of which destroys the federalism America was based on, by attempting to federalize voter registration. Probably the most interesting, is the Senate Special Committee on Aging...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The only reason the federal government hasn’t declared bankruptcy already is that countries keep pumping money into the government, praying that it won’t collapse until after they’re gone. I don’t know about you, but that doesn’t sound like they’re meeting their fiduciary responsibilities. If you want to know why fiscal mismanagement in the federal government is so...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – States often invoke their constitutional powers but ignore the duties that come with them. From Second Amendment conflicts to unauthorized international agreements and political attacks on the judiciary, this piece examines how state actions strain constitutional obligations and weaken the foundations necessary to preserve a strong and lasting union...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – We’ve seen problems in our elections, from questionable ballots to questionable voters. But what have we done to minimize the fraud? What are we doing to help ensure only legal votes are cast? Because Congress has some ideas, and while I think they’re pretty good, it seems no one has noticed that it’s illegal for Congress to do them.

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – The Declaration showed the world the grievances the colonies had with their king as justification for their separation. Now, some 250 years later, are we prepared to challenge those same grievances with the federal government? What about our state governments? Unlike the colonists, we do not need a revolution to redress our grievances...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Two states offer a clear warning about what happens when government greed drives policy. California’s tax ambitions push businesses and jobs away, while New York demands national funding for long-ignored infrastructure. Both cases reveal how short-term political gain, misuse of public money, and ideological priorities undermine economic stability and public trust...

The Constitution Study with Host Paul Engel – Government no longer serves as a neutral protector but acts as an aggressive force that intimidates states and citizens alike. From elections to constitutional rights, political power is wielded through coercion rather than consent. History shows bullies retreat when confronted, and freedom survives only when people recognize injustice and choose to stand up—legally, firmly, and without fear...