Historian David O. Stewart joins to discuss his latest book, The Democracy We Must Keep, which examines the foundational ideas in nine key founding-era documents that shaped America's constitutional democracy. Stewart discusses how the founders sought to create a government strong enough to govern but constrained enough to protect liberty, the compromises and debates that shaped the Constitution, and the warnings about political parties and factionalism in Washington’s Farewell Address and Jefferson’s First Inaugural. Julie Silverbrook, chief content and learning officer at the National Constitution Center, moderates.
Resources
David O. Stewart, The Democracy We Must Keep: Seven Founders, Nine Documents, and The Ideas That Shaped America, (2026)
“The Fragility of Self-Government,” The Civic Decade (October 14, 2026)
Interactive Constitution, National Constitution Center
Interactive Declaration of Independence, National Constitution Center
George Washington’s Farewell Address (1796), National Constitution Center
Thomas Jefferson’s First Inaugural Address (1801), National Constitution Center
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