The Law of the Land, Part 1 | America's Written Constitution with Akhil Reed Amar

Article V says no state can lose its equal vote in the Senate without consenting. Akhil Reed Amar argues that clause blocks less than it appears to, and explains the reasoning. This lecture covers the amendment article, which Amar treats as the most fundamental part of the document because it governs how everything else can change. He lays out the four pathways, two for proposing and two for ratifying, and notes that the president plays no role and that the convention route has never been used. Measured against the alternatives the founders knew, it holds up: the Articles of Confederation required all thirteen states and were effectively unamendable, several state constitutions let ordinary legislatures rewrite them or allowed amendment only on fixed dates, and the British constitution was unwritten. Amar also revisits his own younger view that the bar is too high, noting that a high bar screened out far more bad proposals than good ones. The lecture closes on Article V's two provisos, the now-moot protection of the slave trade until 1808 and the guarantee of equal Senate representation, which was added late and, he argues, was not thought through. Chapters: 00:00 Where the tour has reached 03:15 Articles V, VI, and VII: constitutional supremacy 03:49 The four amendment pathways 06:23 Why the amendment rules matter most 07:56 The flaw that doomed the Articles of Confederation 09:31 How state constitutions handled amendment 12:05 Is the bar set too high 14:41 The two provisos in Article V 17:49 A workaround, and why small states stay protected Learning objectives: After watching, you'll be able to: - List the four amendment pathways Article V provides - Compare Article V with the amendment rules of the Articles of Confederation and the states - Assess whether the amendment threshold is too demanding - Explain the two provisos limiting Article V and their present status - Analyze whether the Senate apportionment proviso actually blocks reform of the Senate 📺 Watch the full playlist on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCq6-l8oFuvk 🎓 Enroll on Coursera for assessments and a certificate: https://www.coursera.org/learn/written-constitution 🌐 Explore more learning opportunities on Yale Online: https://online.yale.edu/courses/americas-written-constitution