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Constitution

Research, reports, and lectures from Wheatley Institute
"[The Constitution] must be maintained, for it is the only safeguard of our liberties."
-Abraham Lincoln
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Constitution

Wheatley Institute Director Paul Edwards Joins New Braver Angels Advisory Council

June 12, 2026 01:31 PM
Paul Edwards, Director of Wheatley Institute at Brigham Young University, has been announced as part of a brand-new advisory council at Braver Angels, a nation-wide organization dedicated to cross-partisan bridge building, the practice of "courageous citizenship", and depolarization. Edwards is joined by 22 other committee members, some of whom include:
2 Min Read
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Constitution

What is the Role of Cultural Elites in America's Toxic Polarization?

June 08, 2026 05:33 PM
In May, students, professors, and guests gathered to listen to Bret Stephens— author, Pulitzer Prize winner, and New York Times columnist— speak on the role of the cultural elite in American polarization. The lecture was hosted by Wheatley Institute, the BYU Political Science Department, and the Initiative for Peacemaking, and served as the opening keynote for the 2026 Brigham Young University Peacemaking Conference.
3 Min Read
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Constitution

Equal Justice and the Blessings of Liberty

June 08, 2026 02:41 PM
"Considering the Constitution in light of the Declaration of Independence, these documents suggest that equal justice might involve more than formal legal equality," Wheatley Fellow Bradley Rebeiro writes. "It requires not only the protection of rights through the rule of law, but also a continuing commitment to the conditions that make liberty genuinely available to all."
1 Min Read
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Constitution

Abraham Lincoln and the Lost Art of Persuasion

May 27, 2026 12:29 PM
Is rhetoric good or a bad? In his newest op-ed, Justin Collings— academic vice president of Brigham Young University and Wheatley Affiliated Scholar— argues that it's a noble tool. America just isn't using it.
1 Min Read
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Constitution

BYU Students Visit Historic Sites for America’s 250th

May 05, 2026 01:04 PM
In honor of America's 250th anniversary, BYU history professor Tyson Reeder, with support from the Wheatley Institute, taught a semester-long history course on the Declaration of Independence. As a culminating learning experience, the entire class, which included several Wheatley Scholars, traveled to key historical sites associated with the Declaration in Virginia, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia.
1 Min Read
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Religion

More Than Words: Making a Prophet’s Call for Peace Our Own

April 08, 2026 04:52 PM
"In the long run, especially the eternal long run, division serves no one. It is exhausting, debilitating and destructive. President Oaks, in the name of Christ, has again invited us to choose a better way — the way of a peacemaker who understands that through our actions now, each of us will make the most of this life and the one to come."
1 Min Read
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Constitution

Serpent in Eden: Foreign Meddling and Partisan Politics in James Madison's America

March 24, 2026 03:39 PM
There was standing room only as Tyson Reeder, Wheatley Affiliated Scholar and assistant professor of history at Brigham Young University, delivered a lecture at the Wheatley office earlier this month.
1 Min Read
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Constitution

Is the Republic in the Midst of a Constitutional Crisis?

March 23, 2026 02:35 PM
Wheatley Fellow Thomas N. Griffith contributed an op-ed to the Deseret News about upholding the Constitution through effective dialogue and compromise, arguing that the biggest threat to the U.S. Constitution is "the toxic polarization that is dividing our people."
1 Min Read
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Constitution

Opinion: What Justice Gorsuch Can Teach Us About the Most Important Feature of Government

March 03, 2026 02:08 PM
Thomas B. Griffith, a non-resident fellow at Wheatley Institute, co-authors a Deseret News opinion article on the characteristics of compromise and plurality found at the heart of the American legislative branch.
1 Min Read
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