About the Podcast: 60-Second Civics is a daily podcast that provides a quick and convenient way for listeners to learn about our nation’s government, the Constitution, and our history. The podcast explores themes related to civics and government, the constitutional issues behind the headlines, and the people and ideas that formed our nation’s history and government.
Get Involved: Join the conversation about each episode on Twitter. Or you can contact the show by emailing Mark Gage. Let me know what you think!
You Can Help: 60-Second Civics is supported by private donations. You can help keep the podcasts coming by donating, buying an ebook, or by writing a nice review in iTunes to help others discover the show. We love our listeners. You are the reason we created the podcast. Thank you for your kind support!
Music: The theme music for 60-Second Civics is provided by Cheryl B. Engelhardt. You can find her online at cbemusic.com. The song featured on the podcast is Cheryl B. Engelhardt's "Complacent," which you purchase on iTunes, along with all of Cheryl's music.
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60-Second Civics: Episode 5218, The Roman Republic as an Example and a Warning: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 14 The Roman Republic began in the sixth century BC and lasted until the first century BC and the establishment of the Roman Empire. The Roman Republic was both an example and a warning for the American Founders.
60-Second Civics: Episode 5217, Classical Republicanism: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 14 The American Founders had read a great deal about the ideals and practices of ancient Greek and Roman city-states and the thinkers of classical antiquity. They were familiar with classical republicanism, which emphasized civic participation and the responsibility of citizens for the well-being of country.
60-Second Civics: Episode 5216, The Roman Republic: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 13 The Roman Republic was the ancient society that exercised the greatest influence on the American Founders. Historians during the founding era thought that the Roman Republic had done the best job of promoting the common good; that is, doing what was best for the society as a whole.
60-Second Civics: Episode 5215, The Problem with Constitutional Government: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 12 As the Founders of the new American republic knew, constitutional government can take many forms. A constitutional government can have a single ruler, a group of rulers, or rule by the people as a whole. However, this system does have flaws. Learn more in today's podcast!
60-Second Civics: Episode 5214, Popular Sovereignty and Higher Law: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 11 In democracies, the sovereign people are the ultimate authority that grants all powers exercised by government. This is called popular sovereignty. Popular sovereignty requires that the whole body of citizens consent to be governed by the constitution that they authorize and under which they live. Constitutions are forms of higher law.
60-Second Civics: Episode 5213, Constitutional Government Is Limited Government: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 10 A constitution limits the powers of government by defining and distributing its powers. However, just because a nation has a constitution does not mean that it has a constitutional government.
60-Second Civics: Episode 5212, What Is a Constitution? Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 9 A constitution is an authoritative law through which the sovereign people of a democracy authorize a government to be established and grant it certain powers. Learn more in today's episode!
60-Second Civics: Episode 5211, The Reason for a Representative Government: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 8 While the founders were supportive of democracy as a concept, they had their reservations about certain types. Learn more in this episode!
60-Second Civics: Episode 5210, James Madison and the Republic: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 7 What did James Madison think about the term andquot;republicandquot; and why is this significant for the foundation of the United States? Find out more in today'ss episode!
60-Second Civics: Episode 5209, The Mixed Constitution: Ideas that Informed the American Founders, Part 6 From where did the American Founders learn about the idea of a ???mixed constitution???? Listen to today???s episode to learn about its Greek and Roman origins and more!
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