Happy Constitution Day!

As some of you may have heard, today is officially Constitution Day. Declared a federal holiday in 2004, Constitution Day falls on September 17th and marks the anniversary of the ratification of our Constitution in 1789. Alliance for Justice President Nan Aron is celebrating by participating in a panel discussion at American University’s Washington College of Law entitled, “The 2008 Election and the Future of the Federal Courts.” She’ll be debating the president of the conservative Committee for Justice, Curt Levey. Give ‘em hell, Nan!

Meanwhile, the Washington Post recognized the holiday by publishing a special interview with Chief Justice John Roberts targeted at students. In the interview, Chief Justice Roberts explains what he thinks is the “coolest” part of the Constitution: “Under the Constitution, justices serve for life, so they can say what the law means without worrying that it might be unpopular. Because the Supreme Court is separate from the rest of the government, it can make sure the government follows the law, too. People may know that, but I'm not sure they know how rare and special it is.” While we rarely agree with the man, we too share this particular sentiment.

Finally, the Senate celebrated this auspicious occassion by continuing Sen. Byrd's (D-WV) tradition of speaking to the chamber about the importance of our most sacred document. You can see his passionate speech below.