Sedition and the Democrats' Video on Refusing to Obey Unlawful Orders

Could Senator Mark Kelly successfully be prosecuted for sedition? Not under current law as developed by the Supreme Court. Tushnet presses Seidman on his opposition to the Court’s invocation of the Constitution to prevent democratically elected governments from enacting whatever policies the people want—even in connection with speech restrictions. Seidman sticks to his guns and says that, though prosecuting Kelly would be profoundly unwise the Supreme Court shouldn’t block a prosecution by invoking the First Amendment. From there we clarify our long-standing disagreements, ending with Tushnet’s observation that when the Supreme Court is hitting on all cylinders it contributes to democratic self-governance and Seidman’s contention that the Court misfires so often that we ought to junk the car.