SUNY Orange to host lecture on how American presidents have tested the U.S. Constitution

MIDDLETOWN — The second in the annual mini-series “Celebrating the United States Constitution” is scheduled at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 19, in the Gilman Center for International Education, Room 130 of the Library at SUNY Orange’s Middletown campus.
The speaker is commentator, columnist, editorial writer, and political analyst Brigid Callahan Harrison, professor of Political Science and Law at Montclair State University.
Her topic for the evening lecture is "From George Washington to Donald Trump: Historical and Contemporary Challenges to the Constitution by U.S. Presidents."
While the title takes the guesswork out of the topic, obviously many men have held the powerful position of president. During the presentation, Harrison “will describe how various presidents, including Jefferson, Lincoln, F.D.R., L.B.J., Trump and others have tested the bonds of the Constitution and the nature of the recourse left for the other branches of government and the public.”
She will detail how these presidents have acted in “‘extra-Constitutional’ ways, with varying repercussions.”
Harrison is an experienced, engaging speaker who is an expert on the politics of the Millennial Generation. She received her B.A. from Stockton University, her M.A. from Rutgers, and her Ph.D. from Temple University, where she was a national Mensa graduate fellow.
She is the author of "American Democracy Now," now in its fifth edition and one of the leading introductory political science textbooks in the United States.
She also authored "A More Perfect Union, Power and Society," now in its 13th edition, and "Women in American Politics," as well as various journal articles.
Harrison provides regular political analysis to ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX News, and their local affiliates, to CBS News radio, and to various NPR radio programs. She is a columnist for The New York Observer, PolitickerNJ, The Star Ledger and The Bergen Record and her editorials have appeared in The New York Times, USA Today and The Press of Atlantic City.
This lecture is free and open to the public. No registration is necessary.
The Gilman Center is located in the Library at the corner of South Street and East Conkling Avenue (GPS: 14 East Conkling Avenue).
Free parking is available in various college lots and on street. Questions may be directed to Cultural Affairs at (845)341-4891 and cultural@sunyorange.edu. The website is www.sunyorange.edu/culturalaffairs.