Civics on the Rocks

Mack and Steve show no forgiveness as they discuss one of the president’s broadest powers. REFERENCES Who does have the power? The President: Constitution Annotated. “ArtII.S2.C1.3.1 Overview of Pardon Power.” Congress.gov. https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artII-S2-C1-3-1/ALDE_00013316/ It depends on each state and each state constitution, but each state governor has it: ACLU. “What’s at Stake.” https://www.aclu.org/issues/smart-justice/parole-and-release/clemency-and-pardons A commutation: Legal Information Institute. “Commutation.” Reviewed January 2025. Cornell Law School. https://www.law...

Listen to Mack and Steve discuss checks, balances, and how it always comes back to we, the people. REFERENCES There’s three coequal branches: The White House. “Our Government.” https://www.whitehouse.gov/government/ Take France: Georgetown Law Library. “The Structure of the French Legal System.” https://guides.ll.georgetown.edu/francelegalresearch/legalsystem Or Britain: Courts and Tribunals Judiciary. “Overview of the Judiciary.” https://www.judiciary.uk/about-the-judiciary/history-of-the-judiciary-in-england-and-wales/history-of-the-judiciary/ What you would call a civil law system: Legal Information Institute. “Civil Law.” Revi...

Steve and Mack get into the legalities of militias, and they may not be what you think. They’re definitely more complicated. REFERENCES A bunch of farmers that run home to get their guns to come to the common defense against the Redcoats: American Battlefield Trust. “Lexington and Concord.” https://www.battlefields.org/learn/revolutionary-war/battles/lexington-and-concord Even though we have selective service: Selective Service System. “About Selective Service.” https://www.sss.gov/about/ We haven’t had the draft be active for a while: Selective Se...

We’re not just chatting about the weather. I mean, we are…but there is also social commentary and a bit of moral outrage. This episode is longer than most because we left in more of the silliness. It felt called for. REFERENCES A warning for a tornado outbreak: National Weather Service. “Summary of Significant Severe Thunderstorm and Tornado Outbreak of March 14–15, 2025.” https://www.weather.gov/pah/Mar14-15_2025Severe Footage of 18-wheelers getting blown off the road around Amarillo: The Weather Channel. “Powerful Winds Flip Trucks, Cause Texas Pile-Ups” [Y...

Okay, so it’s not our best show title, but you get what it’s about don’t you? Yep, we’re jumping headfirst into the chaos machine. Won’t you join us? REFERENCES There have recently been a whole bunch of executive orders: Federal Register. “2025 Donald J. Trump Executive Orders.” National Archive. https://www.federalregister.gov/presidential-documents/executive-orders/donald-trump/2025 If you didn’t get the weather map joke: Stracqualursi, Veronica. “Washington Post: Trump Was the One Who Altered Dorian Trajectory Map With Sharpie.” September 6, 2019. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/06/polit...

Mack and Steve tackle the home state of Texas after a listener asked, what the heck is going on here? Spoilers: it’s vouchers. References Our capital is taller: Texas State Preservation Board. “Capitol Myths and Legends.” https://tspb.texas.gov/prop/tc/tc-history/myths-legends/index.html Back to the constitution of 1876: Ericson, Joe E. & Wallace, Ernest. “Constitution of 1876.” Updated March 23, 2021. Texas State Historical Association. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/constitution-of-1876 Learn about the Reconstruction period in Texas (a very racist time): Moneyhon, Carl H. “Recons...

Mack and Steve discuss the government worker bees who don’t serve at the pleasure of the president, and how the new administration wants to change that under the auspices of 2025. Also, there may be a UFO flap. Stay tuned! REFERENCES What’s the civil service? Page, Edward C. & Bridges, Edward. “Civil Service.” Updated December 15, 2024. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/civil-service Let’s talk about the Pendleton Act: National Archives. “Pendleton Act (1883).” Reviewed February 8, 2022. https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/pendleton-act The problem with the spoils system...

Just in case you were wondering, yes, Mack has tried to tell you about this twice and it has been cut twice. Cheers!

Mack, Steve, and Anne hold a group therapy session after the election. Seriously, we recorded this two days after getting the news and the discussion runs the gamut of emotions. Mostly angry. There’s a lot of cussing. Nobody stayed on topic very well. Also, a dog was in the room with us and that got picked up by the mic. This isn’t our finest work. Feel free to skip this one and meet us back in the new year. Happy holidays. Be excellent to one another. References Some crazy-ass people burning ballots: Bo...

Because I’m sure you want to hear what to two, old, land-owning, white guys have to say about the subject. Seriously, though, tomorrow you get to help decide which way this question gets answered. Take advantage of your moment in history. Special note to our Spotify listeners: does it feel like it’s been a while since we posted? Sorry about that! Due to a technical issue, our magic “post everywhere” button was posting everywhere but Spotify. We’ve fixed the problem and you should see new episodes going forward. If you want to listen to what you m...

Mack and Steve discuss why it always seems to the same two groups, how it really isn’t, and how that might inform your choices when voting. Wade on in, because sometimes it doesn’t feel like a party at all. References Take Britain as a counterpoint with a parliamentary system: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Parliament.” Updated: September 27, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Parliament/Decline-of-the-House-of-Lords The prime minister is a member of the legislature: The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Prime minister.” Updated: September 25, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/prime-minist...

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