ROBERT W. KASTENMEIER LECTURE AMERICAN DEMOCRACY AND THE RULE OF LAW IN PERIL HON. J. MICHAEL LUTTIG* & CHARLIE SYKES** The Robert W. Kastenmeier Lecture*** University of Wisconsin Law School March 14, 2024 Sykes: Thank you, Dean Tokaji, for that kind introduction. Judge Luttig, it is good to talk with you again, to be here at the University of Wisconsin talking about weighty constitutional issues, and to be talking about a former President who paid hush money to a porn star, who absconded with documents, and who faces a legal reckoning for January 6th.1 I want to tee that up first. It’s been more than three years since the attempted overthrow of the government on January 6th. Where are we now? Judge Luttig: First, thank you Dean for that introduction—it means the world to me. It’s an honor for me to be here for the Robert Kastenmeier Lecture. I had the great privilege of working with Congressman Kastenmeier many years ago, when I began my service in Washington, D.C. with Chief Justice Warren E. Burger. I was an intern for the Chief Justice before I went to law school. The Chief Justice and I became fast friends beginning in 1976, almost forty-eight years ago.
* Former Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1991–2006). ** Wisconsin political commentator, NBC/MSNBC contributor, and founder and former Editor-at-Large of The Bulwark. *** This transcript of the discussion has been edited for publication. The Law Review thanks Mikaela Steckelis, Julie Seungyeon Kim, Benjamin Sevart, and August Rice for their help in transcribing and editing this lecture. 1. Amy O’Kruk & Curt Merrill, Donald Trump’s Criminal Cases, in One Place, CNN, https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2023/07/politics/trump-indictmentscriminal-cases/ [https://perma.cc/Z9ZF-NQNN] (Sept. 13, 2024). https://doi.org/10.59015/wlr.YFBD5209