Matthew Spalding is the Kirby professor in constitutional government and dean of the Van Andel Graduate School of Government at Hillsdale College and oversees the Allan P. Kirby Jr. Center for Constitutional Studies and Citizenship at Hillsdale’s Washington, D.C., campus. His new book, "The Making of the American Mind: The Making of Our Declaration of Independence," was released in December 2025.
View all authorsSocietyCommentary
The following remarks were delivered by Matthew Spalding at the Freedom 250 Mobile Museum kickoff event in Summerfield, North Carolina, on Jan. 21. It is great… Read More
PoliticsCommentary
“In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this,” Madison writes in Federalist 51, “You… Read More
Across this great land, patriotic Americans are behaving subversively. We’re quoting from our pocket Constitutions, starting reading groups to discuss our founding documents, even gathering… Read More
News
In another victory for common sense and the Constitution, nullification has died a deserved death in North Dakota. Sometimes you really can’t win for losing…. Read More
Health CareNews
The recent effort to revive nullification may have just met its high water mark. In the last 6 months, various laws with the objective of… Read More
The Constitution has returned to Congress. It began with a ceremonial reading of the document on the House floor for the first time in US… Read More
During the 1700s, Philadelphia was an unpleasant place in the summer. Malaria and yellow fever were rampant. There were no cures and no known ways… Read More
For decades now the secular Left has constantly pressed at every opportunity to keep any semblance of religion away from anything that is somehow connected… Read More
Along with many of our allies, we here at Heritage have been focusing attention on “Progressivism,” the political movement which is largely responsible for the… Read More
In light of this week’s events, many Americans are frustrated and disheartened. But we should take heart. Today marks the 235th anniversary of Patrick Henry’s… Read More
In 1774, in response to the first Tea Party, the British Parliament issued a series of acts designed to control the colonists, stop their protests… Read More
Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) has pointed observers to a problematic section of the health care legislation now before the Senate that proposes (in Section 3403)… Read More
Does Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize acceptance violate the Constitution? Interesting question. Article I, Section 9 of the U.S. Constitution says that: No Title of Nobility… Read More
News
Of the many influences that shaped the American concept of liberty, the first and most formative was faith. More than anything else, religion formed the… Read More
So claimed Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) in the Senate Finance Committee debate on Tuesday morning. The “public option” would create the “choice” of a new… Read More
Amid all the news out of Chicago and Detroit, don’t forget the ongoing scandal simmering at the U.S. Capitol. We stand by our criticism of historical… Read More
It’s a scandal what Congress has arranged for the public to be taught inside its Capitol Visitor Center, the $621 million underground gateway and “educational… Read More
We’ve heard a lot lately about “redistribution of wealth.” What would the American Founders think? Property rights provide the foundation of prosperity. As Americans, we’re… Read More
