Four years after Britain recognized American independence, Hamilton was already questioning whether Americans could sustain their new nation. Read my latest.

“We hold these truths to be self-evident…” That is the line most of us remember. But the Declaration does not stop there. It set a standard for a new nation, one Americans have continued to pursue generation after generation.

Can the country respond to new pressures & new forms of power without losing sight of its principles? That question has shaped the republic for generations, & it continues to shape our politics today [ @scottenglish.com ] www.scottenglish.com/p/why-the-un...

On 14 June 1775, the men of the Continental Army stepped forward without knowing whether they would be remembered as patriots or traitors. 251 years later, Citizen Soldiers still answer the call. Happy Birthday, U.S. Army.

“Two hundred and fifty years after independence, the republic remains unfinished because every generation must decide what it is willing to contribute to it.” Introducing The Unfinished Republic.

Our Republic depends on people believing the system still answers to them. Politicians break that trust when they draw maps to protect power rather than representation. My latest in The Federalists Reloaded: Who Are They Serving? open.substack.com/pub/scotteng...

Last week, I learned that my high school chemistry teacher, James Lohr, had passed away. He taught me much more than chemistry, and he stayed with me long after I left his classroom.

We can debate issues, but we should not debate process. The birthright citizenship case before the Supreme Court is also about whether a president can try to change the law by executive order. Read it.

The more I work through the Federalist Papers, the more relevant they seem today. Federalist No. 26 is about military power, public accountability, and the job Congress was meant to do. Read it 👇👇 open.substack.com/pub/scotteng...

Congress has the power to declare war. Too often, it chooses talk over action and theater over responsibility. Click down there.👇 www.scottenglish.com/p/outsourcin...

The slow walk back to the monarchy over the past 250 years. Happy Presidents' Day, if we can keep it.

War Powers and the Illusion of Restraint open.substack.com/pub/scotteng...

“The Constitution solved the problem of power. It did not solve the problem of belonging.” open.substack.com/pub/scotteng...

“A republic survives only when its citizens see themselves as responsible for its defense. Not only in war, but in peace. Not only in emergencies, but in the steady work of preserving liberty”~ @scottenglish.com #VeteransDay www.scottenglish.com/p/the-citize...

By Federalist 20, Hamilton and Madison had seen enough horror for a trilogy. Greece fell. Germany stumbled. The Dutch Republic became a bureaucratic zombie. The Constitution was their boomstick against the undead army of indecision. https://bit.ly/3LngDpN

Morris Rosen, a survivor on a mission, left this world on December 12, 2020, in his adopted hometown of Baltimore, MD. His mission: To be a voice for those who died in the Holocaust [ @scottenglish.com ] www.scottenglish.com/p/living-to-...

Madison and Hamilton walked into Federalist No. 18 like a tag team ready to drop the Articles of Confederation through a folding table. Their finisher? A history lesson on how pride and disunity always lose the match. https://bit.ly/4hpHaPd

Thanks to the Scandalized podcast for interviewing me this week. Something new for a lot of folks. Give it a listen! Hiking the Podcast Trail https://bit.ly/4nOD8lM

Hamilton believed the federal government had “no temptation” to interfere in local life. Two centuries later, the bureaucratic state proves he was wrong. Hamilton vs. the Bureaucratic State 👇 https://bit.ly/4pPj9oy

Even in dark moments, we can choose light. Violence does not have to define us. Compassion can. 👉 https://bit.ly/4n1ubW0

Memory fades, but responsibility endures. Never Forget. https://bit.ly/4pk5Xru

Federalist 15: Hamilton wanted enforcement. Franklin argued for freedom. Striking the balance is never easy. https://bit.ly/4mVE6MP

"What was once Ronald Reagan’s “Shining City on the Hill” has become a perverted Mordor casting darkness on the rest of us." Read The Federalists Reloaded on Number 14 now, "The Union Isn't Too Big. Washington Is." https://bit.ly/45SNSI2

Why should they raid my house? He’s the one who sucks.

On leaving a job without a plan and how one just appears before you. Why I'm joining the Pritzker Military Museum and Library. https://bit.ly/4mBTVaQ

Hamilton warned us. Tariffs failed. The tax code rewards wealth over work. And the middle class is left holding the bag. 🧵 The Federalists Reloaded | No. 12 Read Now: Taxed, Tariffed, and Totally Screwed 🔗 https://bit.ly/3Hizgtg

Tariffs are flying. Trade policy is chaos. Hamilton warned us in 1787. Federalist No. 11 wasn’t about control, it was about leverage. The latest edition of The Federalists Reloaded. 🔗 https://bit.ly/4fdUBkd

Airstrikes. Protests. A Speaker resigns. Clinton impeached. I was working for Mark Sanford, and somehow we were in the middle of the action. Four Wild Days in December: https://bit.ly/418RxzT

Coming Friday. You won't want to miss it. Sign up at www.scottenglish.com

The Federalists Reloaded: Madison's warning on factions. It's a scorcher. https://bit.ly/415Z8PJ

“You’re not ready.” Four months later: “Take the job or clean out your desk.” Working for Mark Sanford was part Jagger and Richards, part HR nightmare. But it taught me how to lead, fight, and survive dysfunction. New post is up. 👇https://bit.ly/4eW5ozf

“The man who reads nothing at all is better educated than the man who reads nothing but newspapers.” Jefferson Fear is a product now. Politicians, media, and algorithms all profit. We can do better. Read deeper. Think harder. Or else. 📝 New post: https://bit.ly/4eP6ixr

I spent nearly 20 years working with Mark Sanford. The hardest part wasn’t the politics. It was protecting the brand, even from the man. It started with a one-minute sugar speech. It ended with a lesson I never forgot. https://bit.ly/44VuIlr

Flip This Government: Hamilton and Madison weren’t chasing utopia. They were building a system that could take a hit and keep running. New Federalists Reloaded is live: What they built, Where it’s cracking, How we fix it Read it here → https://bit.ly/FlipThisGovernment

Happy Independence Day 🇺🇸 Liberty isn’t a brand. It’s a responsibility. We don’t have to agree on everything, but we do have to stay in the conversation. That’s how you keep a republic. I wrote about it here. Give it a read. https://bit.ly/4lw8pZP

In the Fall of 1996, I got fired from my first job in DC. It felt like the world had ended. It turned out to be the beginning of my career. www.scottenglish.com/p/youre-fire...

OTD 2009: A mysterious disappearance ends with a wild press conference. Then the real collapse began. This is the story of what happened after the cameras shut off. www.scottenglish.com/p/sixteen-ye...

Helluva way to start a Monday. 🔥🔥🔥

I didn’t know it yet, but I was stepping into the orbit of one of the most unconventional and complicated political figures of our time. And somehow, he’d become my future boss. www.scottenglish.com/p/call-me-ma...

The Articles of Confederation failed. Hamilton warned that it would happen again in Federalist 7. Hamilton didn’t warn us; he knew us. The latest edition of The Federalists Reloaded: Fifty Ways to Leave the Union. www.scottenglish.com/p/the-federa...

It’s my third Father’s Day without my dad. Don English was a Marine, a fireman, a town councilman—and a tough, honest father who showed love through action. This was my eulogy for him. 📖 https://bit.ly/3HVZAct

I didn’t have a plan. I had a Rolodex, a chain-smoking boss, and a job that barely paid the bills. That’s how my career in politics started and how it eventually led to something much bigger. New on Political Hangover: Before the Trail https://bit.ly/43HeuMp

There is never a shortage of fairy tale projections in Washington. Congress doesn't have to pick and choose rosy scenarios to see we have a $37 trillion debt. Stop shooting the messenger. While you're reading, subscribe to The Debt Dispatch: https://bit.ly/3HElgK5

Hamilton wasn’t warm and fuzzy. He didn’t write for comfort. He wrote to prevent disaster. And Federalist No. 6 is one of his most brutal, clear-eyed essays. With a guest appearance from John Cena. New post: Hamilton vs. the Heel Turn 🔗 https://bit.ly/43ArYcM

Before the Constitution, we tried something else, and it failed spectacularly. Gridlock, trade wars, and Shays’ Rebellion were just the beginning. Here's why the Articles of Confederation had to go and what they still teach us about power, unity, and rebooting a nation. https://bit.ly/4mLc8DL

Edgar Kumley wasn’t chasing anything. He was holding something down. Holding a place together. Holding people together. He lived a life of purpose. Of habit. Of presence. In this age of churn, that’s not just rare — it’s revolutionary [ @scottenglish.com ] www.scottenglish.com/p/unsung-he-...

A decade after the Articles of Confederation nearly tore America apart, John Jay made one last plea for unity in Federalist 5. The fight over state sovereignty hasn’t gone away. Jay was right: Unity is survival. https://bit.ly/43NsNxO

Last year, there were 6,000 dog bites. That’s 16 mail carriers bitten each day on the job. It’s not just big dogs; Princess the chihuahua and Gary the goose are out there, too. Read the full (and sometimes funny) stories in the latest Unsung: https://bit.ly/43Qdw0e

Coming tomorrow, dogs, geese, and mailmen. Oh my!

According to John Jay, a unified government is necessary for a common defense against foreign enemies. What he never imagined was an absentee Congress and an efficient means to peddle influence.