ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Noah Feldman - Constitutional law scholar
Noah Feldman studies the intersection of religion, politics and law.

Why you should listen

Noah Feldman is a professor and writer who tries to figure out how to make the government follow the rules; what the rules are that the government has to follow; and what to do if the rules are being broken. In his work, he asks questions like: How can a 225-year-old constitutional blueprint still work? Can you design a new and better constitution from scratch in places like Iraq and Tunisia? What rights do we have, really?

Feldman is the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and a contributing writer for Bloomberg View. He served as senior constitutional advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, and advised members of the Iraqi Governing Council on the drafting of the Transitional Administrative Law or interim constitution. He is writing a biography on James Madison, principal author of the Constitution and fourth president of the US; it's forthcoming in 2017.

Feldman is the author of six other books: Cool War: The Future of Global Competition (Random House, 2013); Scorpions: The Battles and Triumphs of FDR’s Great Supreme Court Justices (Twelve Publishing, 2010); The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State (Princeton University Press, 2008); Divided By God: America's Church-State Problem and What We Should Do About It (Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2005); What We Owe Iraq: War and the Ethics of Nation-building (Princeton University Press 2004) and After Jihad: America and the Struggle for Islamic Democracy (Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2003. He most recently co-authored two textbooks: Constitutional Law, Eighteenth Edition (Foundation Press, 2013) and First Amendment Law, Fifth Edition (Foundation Press, 2013).

More profile about the speaker
Noah Feldman | Speaker | TED.com
TED2017

Noah Feldman: Hamilton vs. Madison and the birth of American partisanship

Noah Feldman: Hamilton contra Madison e a origem do partidarismo americano

Filmed:
2,087,300 views

Não há nada de novo na divisão que aflige a política americana hoje, diz o estudioso do direito constitucional Noah Feldman. Na verdade, começa nos primeiros dias da república, quando uma disputa entre Alexander Hamilton e James Madison levou os dois fundadores a cortar relações e a formar os primeiros partidos políticos do país. Acompanhe Feldman em uma fascinante história do partidarismo americano e um lembrete de esperança sobre como a Constituição tem provado a ela mesma que é maior do que o partidarismo.
- Constitutional law scholar
Noah Feldman studies the intersection of religion, politics and law. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:13
If you've been thinking about US politics
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Se você tem pensado na política dos EUA,
tentando entender o que vem acontecendo
mais ou menos de um ano pra cá,
00:16
and trying to make sense of it
for the last year or so,
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00:20
you might have hit on something
like the following three propositions:
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pode ter se deparado com algo
parecido com estas três ideias:
00:25
one, US partisanship
has never been so bad before;
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a primeira é que o partidarismo dos EUA
jamais esteve tão ruim;
00:31
two,
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a segunda
00:32
for the first time,
it's geographically spatialized --
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é que, pela primeira vez,
está se distribuindo geograficamente,
00:36
we're divided between the coasts,
which want to look outwards,
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estamos divididos entre as regiões
costeiras, que querem olhar para fora,
00:40
and the center of the country,
which wants to look inwards;
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e a região central do país,
que quer olhar para dentro;
e a terceira
00:43
and third,
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00:45
there's nothing we can do about it.
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é que não há nada
que possamos fazer a respeito.
00:49
I'm here to today to say
that all three of these propositions,
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Estou aqui hoje para dizer
que todas essas três ideias,
00:52
all of which sound reasonable,
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que parecem razoáveis,
00:54
are not true.
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não são verdadeiras.
00:57
In fact,
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Na verdade,
00:58
our US partisanship goes all the way back
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nosso partidarismo dos EUA
está fazendo todo o caminho de volta
até o início da república.
01:01
to the very beginning of the republic.
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01:05
It was geographically spatialized
in almost eerily the same way
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Era distribuído geograficamente
quase da mesma forma misteriosa
01:10
that it is today,
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que é hoje,
01:11
and it often has been
throughout US history.
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e tem sido muitas vezes
durante toda a história dos EUA.
01:15
And last,
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Por último e, de longe,
o mais importante,
01:16
and by far most importantly,
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01:19
we actually have
an extraordinary mechanism
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temos realmente
um mecanismo extraordinário
01:23
that's designed to help us manage
factional disagreement and partisanship.
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projetado para nos ajudar a administrar
a divergência partidária e o partidarismo.
01:29
That technology is the Constitution.
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Essa tecnologia é a Constituição.
01:33
And this is an evolving, subtly,
supplely designed entity
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Ela é uma entidade que se desenvolve,
concebida de forma sutil e flexível,
01:39
that has the specific purpose
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que tem o propósito específico
01:40
of teaching us how to manage
factional disagreement
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de nos ensinar a administrar
a divergência partidária onde possível,
01:44
where it's possible to do that,
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01:46
and giving us techniques
for overcoming that disagreement
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e nos fornecer técnicas para superar
essa divergência quando possível.
01:49
when that's possible.
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01:51
Now, in order to tell you the story,
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Para contar a você a história,
01:54
I want to go back
to a pivotal moment in US history,
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quero voltar a um momento
fundamental na história dos EUA,
01:58
and that is the moment
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o momento em que surgiram
a divergência partidária e o partidarismo.
01:59
when factional disagreement
and partisanship was born.
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Na verdade, houve um momento de origem,
02:03
There actually was a birth moment --
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02:05
a moment in US history
when partisanship snapped into place.
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um momento na história dos EUA
em que o partidarismo entrou em cena.
02:10
The person who's at the core
of that story is James Madison.
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A pessoa central da história
é James Madison.
02:16
And at the moment that this began,
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No momento em que isso começou,
James Madison fazia muito sucesso.
02:18
James Madison was riding high.
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02:22
He himself was the Einstein
of not only the US Constitution,
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Ele mesmo era o Einstein
não apenas da Constituição dos EUA,
02:26
but of constitutional thought
more globally,
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mas do pensamento constitucional
de forma mais ampla,
02:29
and, to give him his due,
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e, para ser justo com ele,
ele sabia disso.
02:31
he knew it.
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02:33
In a period of time of just three years,
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Em um período de apenas
três anos, de 1785 a 1788,
02:36
from 1785 to 1788,
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02:38
he had conceived, theorized,
designed, passed and gotten ratified
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ele havia concebido, teorizado,
projetado, aprovado e ratificado
a Constituição dos EUA.
02:45
the US Constitution.
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02:46
And just to give you
some sense of the enormity
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Apenas para dar a você
uma noção da grandeza
do que realmente havia sido
aquela conquista,
02:49
of what that accomplishment actually was,
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02:51
although Madison
couldn't have known it at the time,
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embora Madison não pudesse saber na época,
02:54
today that same constitutional technology
that he invented is still in use
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hoje a mesma tecnologia constitucional
inventada por ele ainda está em uso
02:59
not only in the US,
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não apenas nos EUA,
03:01
but, 230 years later,
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mas, 230 anos depois,
03:02
in places like Canada,
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em lugares como o Canadá,
03:05
India,
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Índia,
03:06
South Africa,
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África do Sul,
03:08
Brazil.
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Brasil.
03:10
So in an extraordinary range
of contexts all over the world,
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Em uma série de contextos em todo o mundo,
esta tecnologia ainda é a dominante,
03:12
this technology is still the dominant,
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03:15
most used, most effective technology
to manage governance.
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a mais utilizada e a mais eficaz
para administrar o governo.
03:19
In that moment,
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Naquele momento,
03:21
Madison believed that,
having solved this problem,
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Madison acreditava
que, tendo resolvido este problema,
03:25
the country would run smoothly,
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o país seguiria sem problemas,
e que havia projetado uma tecnologia
03:27
and that he had designed a technology
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que minimizaria
os resultados do partidarismo
03:29
that would minimize
the results of factions
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03:32
so there would be no political parties.
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para que não houvesse partidos políticos.
03:34
Remarkably, he thought
he had designed a constitution
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Pensou que havia projetado
uma constituição
que era contra os partidos políticos
e que os tornaria desnecessários.
03:36
that was against political parties
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03:38
and would make them unnecessary.
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03:40
He had gotten an enormous degree of help
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Havia conseguido uma enorme ajuda,
03:42
in the final marketing phase
of his constitutional project
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na fase final de marketing
de seu projeto constitucional,
03:46
from a man you may have heard of,
called Alexander Hamilton.
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de um homem de quem você já deve ter
ouvido falar, chamado Alexander Hamilton.
03:50
Now, Hamilton was everything
Madison was not.
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Hamilton era tudo o que Madison não era.
03:54
He was passionate,
where Madison was restrained.
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Era entusiasmado, e Madison era contido.
03:58
He was pansexual,
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Era pansexual,
04:00
where Madison didn't speak
to a woman expect for once
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e Madison não conversava com uma mulher
a não ser uma vez até os 42 anos,
04:03
until he was 42 years old,
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e se casou com Dolley e viveram
felizes para sempre por 40 anos.
04:05
and then married Dolley
and lived happily ever after for 40 years.
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04:08
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
04:10
To put it bluntly,
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Para ser sincero,
Hamilton é o tipo de pessoa
04:11
Hamilton's the kind of person
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sobre quem você escreveria
um musical de hip-hop.
04:12
about whom you would write
a hip-hop musical --
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04:15
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
04:16
and Madison is the kind of person
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Madison é o tipo de pessoa
sobre quem você não escreveria
um musical de hip-hop,
04:17
about whom you would not write
a hip-hop musical.
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04:20
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
ou, de fato, um musical de qualquer tipo.
04:21
Or indeed, a musical of any kind at all.
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04:24
But together,
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Mas juntos haviam se tornado
um par bastante improvável
04:25
they had become a rather unlikely pairing,
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04:27
and they had produced
the Federalist Papers,
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e produziram a obra "O Federalista",
04:29
which offered a justification
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que oferecia uma justificativa
e, como eu havia mencionado,
um plano de marketing para a Constituição,
04:31
and, as I mentioned,
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04:33
a marketing plan for the Constitution,
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extremamente eficaz e bem-sucedido.
04:35
which had been wildly effective
and wildly successful.
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04:40
Once the new government was in place,
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Com o novo governo em vigor,
Hamilton tornou-se secretário do tesouro,
04:42
Hamilton became Secretary of the Treasury,
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e tinha uma ideia
muito específica em mente,
04:44
and he had a very specific idea in mind.
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04:47
And that was
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que era fazer para as instituições
financeiras e a infraestrutura
04:48
to do for financial institutions
and infrastructure
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04:51
exactly what Madison had done
for constitutions.
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exatamente o que Madison
havia feito para as constituições.
04:55
Again, his contemporaries all knew it.
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Todos os contemporâneos dele sabiam disso.
04:57
One of them told Madison,
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Um deles disse a Madison,
que pode não ter gostado muito,
04:59
who can't have liked it very much,
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que Hamilton era
o Newton da infraestrutura.
05:01
that Hamilton was the Newton
of infrastructure.
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05:05
The idea was pretty straightforward.
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A ideia era bastante direta.
05:07
Hamilton would give
the United States a national bank,
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Hamilton daria aos EUA um banco nacional,
05:10
a permanent national debt --
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uma dívida nacional permanente -
05:14
he said it would be
"immortal," his phrase --
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disse que seria "imortal", palavras dele -
05:17
and a manufacturing policy
that would enable trade and manufacturing
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e uma política de produção
que permitiria o comércio e a produção
05:23
rather than agriculture,
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em vez da agricultura,
que era onde a riqueza primária
do país tinha estado historicamente.
05:24
which was where the country's primary
wealth had historically been.
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05:29
Madison went utterly ballistic.
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Madison perdeu totalmente o controle
05:32
And in this pivotal, critical decision,
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e, nesta decisão fundamental e crítica,
em vez de apenas dizer ao mundo
que o velho amigo Hamilton estava errado
05:35
instead of just telling the world
that his old friend Hamilton was wrong
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05:39
and was adopting the wrong policies,
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e estava adotando as políticas erradas,
05:42
he actually began to argue
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começou mesmo a afirmar
05:44
that Hamilton's ideas
were unconstitutional --
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que as ideias de Hamilton
eram inconstitucionais,
05:47
that they violated the very nature
of the Constitution
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que violavam a própria
natureza da Constituição
05:50
that the two of them had drafted together.
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que os dois haviam redigido juntos.
05:54
Hamilton responded
the way you would expect.
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Hamilton respondeu
do jeito que se esperaria.
05:58
He declared Madison to be
his "personal and political enemy" --
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Declarou Madison
o "inimigo pessoal e político" dele,
06:03
these are his words.
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segundo as palavras dele.
06:04
So these two founders who had been
such close friends and such close allies
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Esses dois fundadores, antes amigos
e aliados tão próximos e parceiros,
06:08
and such partners,
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06:10
then began to produce enmity.
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começaram então a criar inimizade.
06:13
And they did it in the good,
old-fashioned way.
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Fizeram isso da boa e velha maneira.
Primeiro, fundaram partidos políticos.
06:16
First, they founded political parties.
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06:17
Madison created a party originally called
the Democratic Republican Party --
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Madison criou
o Partido Democrata Republicano,
"Republicano" para encurtar,
06:21
"Republican" for short --
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e Hamilton criou o Partido Federalista.
06:22
and Hamilton created a party
called the Federalist Party.
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06:26
Those two parties adopted
positions on national politics
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Esses dois partidos adotaram
posições sobre a política nacional
06:30
that were extreme and exaggerated.
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que eram extremas e exageradas.
06:32
To give you a clear example:
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Para dar um exemplo claro:
06:34
Madison, who had always believed
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Madison, que sempre acreditou
06:36
that the country would have
some manufacturing and some trade
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que o país teria um pouco
de produção, comércio e agricultura,
06:39
and some agriculture,
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06:40
began attacking Hamilton
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começou a atacar Hamilton
06:43
as a kind of tool of the financial markets
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como uma espécie de ferramenta
dos mercados financeiros
06:47
whom Hamilton himself intended
to put in charge of the country.
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a quem o próprio Hamilton
pretendia colocar a cargo do país.
06:52
That was an overstatement,
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Aquilo era um exagero, mas era algo
em que Madison chegou a acreditar.
06:54
but it was something
Madison came to believe.
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06:56
He also attacked city life,
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Também atacava a vida urbana,
06:58
and he said that the coasts were corrupt,
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e dizia que as regiões costeiras
eram corruptas,
e o que as pessoas precisavam
fazer era olhar para dentro,
07:00
and what people needed to do
was to look inwards
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07:03
to the center of the country,
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para a região central do país,
07:05
to farmers, who were the essence
of Republican virtue,
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para os fazendeiros, que eram
a essência da virtude republicana,
07:09
and they should go back to the values
that had made American great,
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e deveriam retornar aos valores que haviam
tornado os americanos importantes,
07:12
specifically the values of the Revolution,
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especificamente os valores da revolução,
07:15
and those were the values of low taxes,
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que eram os valores de baixos impostos,
07:18
agriculture
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agricultura e menos comércio.
07:19
and less trade.
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07:21
Hamilton responded to this
by saying that Madison was naïve,
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Hamilton respondeu a isso
dizendo que Madison era ingênuo,
07:26
that he was childish,
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infantil,
07:28
and that his goal was
to turn the United States
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e que o objetivo dele era transformar
os EUA em uma autarquia primitiva,
07:30
into a primitive autarchy,
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07:32
self-reliant and completely ineffectual
on the global scale.
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autossuficiente e completamente
ineficaz na escala mundial.
07:36
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
07:37
They both meant it,
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Ambos falaram sério,
e havia alguma verdade
em cada reivindicação deles,
07:39
and there was some truth
to each of their claims,
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07:42
because each side was grossly exaggerating
the views of the other
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porque cada lado estava exagerando
extremamente os pontos de vista do outro
07:46
in order to fight their war.
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para defender a guerra deles.
07:48
They founded newspapers,
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Fundaram jornais,
e assim, pela primeira vez
na história dos EUA,
07:51
and so for the first time in US history,
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as notícias que as pessoas recebiam
vinham totalmente por meio das lentes
07:53
the news that people received
came entirely through the lens
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07:58
of either the Republican
or the Federalist party.
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do partido republicano ou do federalista.
08:03
How does this end?
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Como isso termina?
08:05
Well, as it turned out,
the Constitution did its work.
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Como resultado, a Constituição
fez o trabalho dela.
08:09
But it did its work in surprising ways
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Mas o fez de maneira surpreendente,
08:13
that Madison himself
had not fully anticipated.
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que o próprio Madison
não havia pelo menos previsto.
08:18
First, there was a series of elections.
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Primeiro, houve uma série de eleições.
08:21
And the first two times out of the box,
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Nas duas primeiras, imediatamente,
08:23
the Federalists destroyed the Republicans.
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os federalistas arrasaram os republicanos.
08:28
Madison was astonished.
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Madison ficou surpreso.
08:31
Of course, he blamed the press.
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Claro, culpou a imprensa.
08:33
(Laughter)
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(Risos)
08:36
And in a rather innovative view --
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Com um ponto de vista um tanto inovador -
Madison nunca fracassava em inovar
em suas intenções -
08:38
Madison never failed to innovate
when he thought about anything --
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disse o motivo pelo qual a imprensa
era tão pró-federalista
08:41
he said the reason
that the press was so pro-Federalist
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é que os anunciantes
eram todos federalistas,
08:44
is that the advertisers
were all Federalists,
178
512266
3375
08:47
because they were traders on the coasts
who got their capital from Britain,
179
515665
4727
por serem comerciantes
das regiões costeiras
que obtiveram seu lucro da Grã-Bretanha,
com a qual o federalismo estava envolvido.
08:52
which Federalism was in bed with.
180
520416
1963
08:55
That was his initial explanation.
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523796
1658
Essa foi a explicação inicial dele.
08:58
But despite the fact that the Federalists,
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2048
Mas, apesar do fato
de que os federalistas,
uma vez no poder,
09:00
once in power,
183
528304
1151
na verdade decretaram leis
que criminalizavam as críticas do governo,
09:01
actually enacted laws that criminalized
criticism of the government --
184
529479
5225
09:06
that happened in the United States --
185
534728
1873
e isso aconteceu nos Estados Unidos...
09:09
nevertheless,
186
537746
1765
apesar disso,
09:11
the Republicans fought back,
187
539535
1687
os republicanos se defenderam,
09:13
and Madison began to emphasize
the freedom of speech,
188
541246
3303
e Madison começou a enfatizar
a liberdade de expressão,
09:16
which he had built
into the Bill of Rights,
189
544573
2488
incorporada na Declaração de Direitos,
09:19
and the capacity of civil society
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547085
2135
e a capacidade da sociedade civil
de se organizar.
09:21
to organize.
191
549244
1366
09:22
And sure enough, nationally,
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550634
2622
Com certeza, a nível nacional,
09:25
small local groups -- they were called
Democratic-Republican Societies --
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553280
4363
pequenos grupos locais, chamados
sociedades democratas-republicanas,
09:29
began to form and protest
against Federalist-dominated hegemony.
194
557667
4645
começaram a se formar e a protestar
contra a hegemonia federalista.
09:35
Eventually, the Republicans managed
to win a national election --
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563136
5237
Finalmente, os republicanos conseguiram
ganhar uma eleição nacional,
09:40
that was in 1800.
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568397
1459
que aconteceu em 1800.
09:42
Madison became the Secretary of State,
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570585
2220
Madison tornou-se secretário de Estado,
09:44
his friend and mentor Jefferson
became president,
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572829
2690
o amigo e mentor Jefferson
tornou-se presidente,
09:47
and they actually, over time,
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575543
2222
e eles, na verdade, ao longo do tempo,
09:49
managed to put the Federalists
completely out of business.
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577789
4455
conseguiram colocar os federalistas
completamente fora dos negócios.
09:54
That was their goal.
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582665
1286
Aquele era o objetivo deles.
09:57
Now, why did that happen?
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585826
1953
Por que aconteceu isso?
10:00
It happened because in the structure
of the Constitution
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588668
3821
Aconteceu porque,
na estrutura da Constituição,
10:04
were several features
that actually managed faction
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592513
3760
várias características conduziam,
na verdade, o partidarismo
10:08
the way there were supposed to do
in the first place.
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596297
2530
do modo que deveriam fazer
em primeiro lugar.
10:10
What were those?
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598851
1255
Quais eram elas?
10:12
One -- most important of all --
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600515
2276
A primeira, a mais importante de todas:
10:14
the freedom of speech.
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602815
1814
a liberdade de expressão.
10:16
This was an innovative idea at the time.
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604653
2157
Era uma ideia inovadora na época.
10:18
Namely, that if you were out of power,
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606834
2259
Isto é, se você estivesse fora do poder,
10:21
you could still say
that the government was terrible.
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609117
2758
ainda poderia dizer
que o governo era terrível.
10:24
Two,
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612960
1160
A segunda:
10:26
civil society organization.
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614890
1762
a organização da sociedade civil,
10:29
The capacity to put together
private groups, individuals,
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617051
4114
a capacidade de reunir grupos privados,
indivíduos, partidos políticos e outros
10:33
political parties and others
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621189
1607
10:34
who would organize to try to bring
about fundamental change.
216
622820
3133
que se organizariam para tentar
provocar mudanças fundamentais.
10:39
Perhaps most significantly
was the separation of powers --
217
627933
4197
Talvez o mais significativo
fosse a separação de poderes,
10:44
an extraordinary component
of the Constitution.
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632154
2479
um componente extraordinário
da Constituição.
10:47
The thing about the separation of powers
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635139
1948
A ideia sobre a separação de poderes
10:49
is that it did then and it does now,
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637111
2474
é que ela, tanto naquele tempo como agora,
conduz o governo para o centro.
10:51
drive governance to the center.
221
639609
3509
10:56
You can get elected to office
in the United States
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644126
3312
Você pode ser eleito
para o cargo nos Estados Unidos
10:59
with help from the periphery,
223
647462
1968
com a ajuda da periferia,
11:01
right or left.
224
649454
1280
da direita ou da esquerda.
11:03
It turns out,
225
651476
1260
Porém,
11:04
you actually can't govern
unless you bring on board the center.
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652760
5339
você não consegue governar
a menos que traga o centro para a equipe.
11:10
There are midterm elections
that come incredibly fast
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658980
3718
Há eleições no meio do mandato
que chegam incrivelmente rápido
11:14
after a presidency begins.
228
662722
1929
após o início da presidência.
11:17
Those drive presidents towards the center.
229
665777
2483
Elas conduzem os presidentes
para o centro.
11:21
There's a structure in which
the president, in fact, does not rule
230
669168
4305
Há uma estrutura na qual
o presidente, na verdade, não controla
11:25
or even govern,
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673497
1411
ou mesmo governa,
11:26
but can only propose laws
which other people have to agree with --
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674932
4045
mas só pode propor leis com as quais
outras pessoas tenham que concordar,
outra característica que tende
a conduzir os presidentes
11:31
another feature that tends
to drive presidents
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679572
2582
11:34
who actually want to get things done
234
682178
1758
que realmente querem fazer as coisas
11:35
to the center.
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683960
1190
para o centro.
11:37
And a glance at the newspapers today
will reveal to you
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685553
4232
Um relance nos jornais
de hoje revelará a você
11:41
that these principles are still
completely in operation.
237
689809
3792
que esses princípios ainda estão
completamente em operação.
11:46
No matter how a president gets elected,
238
694351
2130
Não importa como o presidente
seja eleito, ele não pode fazer nada
11:48
the president cannot get anything done
239
696505
2778
11:52
unless the president first of all
follows the rules of the Constitution,
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700005
3686
a menos que, em primeiro lugar,
siga as regras da Constituição.
11:55
because if not,
241
703715
1156
Caso contrário,
11:56
the courts will stand up,
as indeed has sometimes occurred,
242
704895
3297
os tribunais irão se levantar,
como, de fato, ocorreu às vezes,
12:00
not only recently,
but in the past, in US history.
243
708216
2860
não apenas recentemente,
mas no passado, na história dos EUA.
12:03
And furthermore,
244
711100
1153
Além disso, o presidente
precisa das pessoas,
12:04
the president needs people,
245
712277
1570
12:05
elected officials who know
they need to win election
246
713871
3072
funcionários eleitos que sabem
que precisam ganhar a eleição
12:08
from centrist voters,
247
716967
1445
de eleitores do centro,
12:10
also to back his or her policies
in order to pass laws.
248
718436
4225
também para apoiar as políticas deles
e fazer as leis serem aprovadas.
12:15
Without it, nothing much happens.
249
723562
2575
Sem isso, nada acontece.
12:19
The takeaway of this brief excursus
250
727865
3572
A conclusão desta breve excursão
12:23
into the history of partisanship,
then, is the following:
251
731461
4150
pela história do partidarismo
é a seguinte:
12:29
partisanship is real;
252
737498
1645
o partidarismo é real,
12:32
it's profound;
253
740048
1414
profundo,
12:34
it's extraordinarily powerful,
254
742009
2432
extraordinariamente poderoso,
12:36
and it's terribly upsetting.
255
744465
1790
e terrivelmente perturbador.
12:39
But the design of the Constitution
is greater than partisanship.
256
747495
5687
Mas o projeto da Constituição
é maior do que o partidarismo.
12:46
It enables us to manage partisanship
when that's possible,
257
754278
4433
Ela nos permite administrar
o partidarismo quando possível,
12:50
and it enables us actually
to overcome partisan division
258
758735
5976
realmente superar a divisão partidária
12:56
and produce compromise,
259
764735
1648
e criar o compromisso,
quando e somente quando possível.
12:58
when and only when that is possible.
260
766407
2245
13:03
A technology like that
is a technology that worked
261
771083
3502
Uma tecnologia como essa
é uma tecnologia que funcionou
13:06
for the founders,
262
774609
1717
para os fundadores,
13:08
it worked for their grandchildren,
263
776350
2441
para os netos deles,
13:12
it didn't work at the moment
of the Civil War,
264
780084
2208
não funcionou no momento da guerra civil,
mas depois começou a funcionar novamente.
13:14
but then it started working again.
265
782316
1914
13:16
And it worked for our grandparents,
266
784665
2301
E funcionou para nossos avós,
13:18
our parents,
267
786990
1554
nossos pais
13:20
and it's going to work for us.
268
788568
3418
e irá funcionar para nós.
13:25
(Applause)
269
793468
4456
(Aplausos)
13:30
So what you should do is really simple.
270
798725
2102
O que você deve fazer é realmente simples.
13:33
Stand up for what you believe in,
271
801769
1733
Lute por aquilo que acredita,
13:36
support the organizations
that you care about,
272
804387
3206
apoie as organizações
com as quais você se importa,
13:39
speak out on the issues
that matter to you,
273
807617
2837
fale abertamente sobre os assuntos
que são importantes pra você,
13:43
get involved,
274
811425
1831
envolva-se,
13:45
make change,
275
813280
1515
faça mudanças,
13:46
express you opinion,
276
814819
1895
expresse sua opinião,
13:48
and do it with respect
and knowledge and confidence
277
816738
3851
e faça isso com respeito,
conhecimento e confiança
13:52
that it's only by working together
278
820613
2854
de que, somente trabalhando juntos,
13:55
that the constitutional technology
can do the job that it is designed to do.
279
823491
4571
a tecnologia constitucional pode fazer
o trabalho que se destina a fazer.
14:00
Stand up for what you believe,
280
828997
1693
Defenda o que você acredita,
mas respire fundo enquanto faz isso.
14:02
but take a deep breath while you do it.
281
830714
2099
14:05
It's going to be OK.
282
833358
3055
Vai dar tudo certo.
14:09
Thanks.
283
837067
1359
Obrigado.
14:10
(Applause)
284
838450
4654
(Aplausos)
Translated by Maurício Kakuei Tanaka
Reviewed by Leonardo Silva

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Noah Feldman - Constitutional law scholar
Noah Feldman studies the intersection of religion, politics and law.

Why you should listen

Noah Feldman is a professor and writer who tries to figure out how to make the government follow the rules; what the rules are that the government has to follow; and what to do if the rules are being broken. In his work, he asks questions like: How can a 225-year-old constitutional blueprint still work? Can you design a new and better constitution from scratch in places like Iraq and Tunisia? What rights do we have, really?

Feldman is the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and a contributing writer for Bloomberg View. He served as senior constitutional advisor to the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, and advised members of the Iraqi Governing Council on the drafting of the Transitional Administrative Law or interim constitution. He is writing a biography on James Madison, principal author of the Constitution and fourth president of the US; it's forthcoming in 2017.

Feldman is the author of six other books: Cool War: The Future of Global Competition (Random House, 2013); Scorpions: The Battles and Triumphs of FDR’s Great Supreme Court Justices (Twelve Publishing, 2010); The Fall and Rise of the Islamic State (Princeton University Press, 2008); Divided By God: America's Church-State Problem and What We Should Do About It (Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2005); What We Owe Iraq: War and the Ethics of Nation-building (Princeton University Press 2004) and After Jihad: America and the Struggle for Islamic Democracy (Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2003. He most recently co-authored two textbooks: Constitutional Law, Eighteenth Edition (Foundation Press, 2013) and First Amendment Law, Fifth Edition (Foundation Press, 2013).

More profile about the speaker
Noah Feldman | Speaker | TED.com