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Roger Pilon
Vice President for Legal Affairs
B. Kenneth Simon Chair in Constitutional Studies
Director, Center for Constitutional Studies
Roger Pilon is the founder and director of Cato's Center for Constitutional Studies, which has become an important force in the national debate over constitutional interpretation and judicial philosophy. He is the publisher of the Cato Supreme Court Review and is an adjunct professor of government at Georgetown University through The Fund for American Studies. Prior to joining Cato, Pilon held five senior posts in the Reagan administration, including at State and Justice, and was a National Fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution. In 1989 the Bicentennial Commission presented him with its Benjamin Franklin Award for excellence in writing on the U.S. Constitution. In 2001 Columbia University's School of General Studies awarded him its Alumni Medal of Distinction. Pilon lectures and debates at universities and law schools across the country and testifies often before Congress. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, Legal Times, National Law Journal, Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy, Stanford Law & Policy Review, and elsewhere. He has appeared on ABC's Nightline, CBS's 60 Minutes II, Fox News Channel, NPR, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, and other media. Pilon holds a B.A. from Columbia University, an M.A. and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, and a J.D. from the George Washington University School of Law.
Media Contact: 202-789-5200
To Book a Speaking Engagement: 202-789-5226
E-Mail: rpilon@cato.org
Books and Book Chapters
"The Executive State Tackles Global Warming," Climate Coup: Climate Coup: Global Warming's Invasion of Our Government and Our Lives (2011), pp. 15-42.
"Foreword: Can the Government Do That?", Cato Supreme Court Review: 2009-2010, pp. vii-xviii.
"Into the Pre-emption Thicket: Wyeth v. Levine", Cato Supreme Court Review: 2008-2009, pp. 85-109.
"Foreword: Facial v. As-Applied Challenges: Does It Matter?", Cato Supreme Court Review: 2008-2009, pp. vii-xvii.
"Congress, the Courts, and the Constitution," Chapter 3 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
"Campaign Finance," Chapter 9 of the Cato Handbook for Policymakers, 7th edition.
Cato Studies
"Drug Reimportation: The Free Market Solution," Policy Analysis no. 521, August 4, 2004.
"How Constitutional Corruption Has Led to Ideological Litmus Tests for Judicial Nominees," Policy Analysis no. 446, August 6, 2002.
"Letter from Roger Pilon to Sen. McConnell on Campaign Finance Reform," White Paper, October 12, 1999.
"Mr. Smith, Welcome to Washington," Briefing Paper no. 49, July 30, 1999.
"Reviving the Privileges or Immunities Clause to Redress the Balance Among States, Individuals, and the Federal Government," by Kimberly C. Shankman and Roger Pilon, Policy Analysis no. 326, November 23, 1998.
Articles and Newsletters
"Constitutional Intelligence: Restoring Politics in the War on Terror," 12 Chapman Law Review 655 (2009).
"The Constitutional Protection of Property Rights: America and Europe," Economic Education Bulletin, American Institute for Educational Research, June 2008.
"The United States Constitution: From Limited Government to Leviathan," Economic Education Bulletin, American Institute for Educational Research, December 2005.
"Article: The War Powers in Brief: On the Irreducible Politics of the Matter," 2 Cardozo Public Law, Policy & Ethics Journal 49 (2003).
"Lawless Judging: Refocusing the Issue for Conservatives," 2 Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy 5 (2001).
"The Purpose and Limits of Government," Cato's Letters, 1999
Opinion and Commentary
"Is It Immoral to Cut the Budget?," The Wall Street Journal, April 7, 2011
"Congress Rediscovers the Constitution," The Wall Street Journal, January 4, 2011
"Our Next Stop: Greece -- or Rome," Orange County Register, October 26, 2010
"Making Sense of Congress," Daily Caller, October 12, 2010
"Wrong about Human Rights," Philadelphia Inquirer, September 1, 2010
Cato @ Liberty Blog Posts
"Religion in Service of the Welfare State," May 23, 2011
"Ron Paul on the General Welfare Clause," May 16, 2011
"Will Republicans Come to Grips With Immigration?," May 10, 2011
"The Boundless Executive State: From Global Warming to Sexual Harassment," May 6, 2011
"Will Americans Bite the Bullet — and Vote for Individual Choice?," April 29, 2011
Legal Briefs
Seven-Sky v. Holder, May 23, 2011 (PDF, 122 KB)
Florida v. U.S. Dep't of Health & Human Services, May 11, 2011 (PDF, 104 KB)
Virginia v. Sebelius, April 4, 2011 (PDF, 89 KB)
Thomas More Law Center v. Obama, December 22, 2010 (PDF, 97 KB)
Virginia v. Sebelius, October 1, 2010 (PDF, 71 KB)
Events
"The Moral Implications of Deficits, Debt, and the Budget Battles Ahead," May 9, 2011 [Policy Forum]
"Rehabilitating Lochner: Defending Individual Rights against Progressive Reform," May 2, 2011 [Book Forum]
"The New Health Care Law: What a Difference a Year Makes," March 21, 2011 [Conference]
"Restoring Limited Constitutional Government Starts with Congress," February 10, 2011 [Capitol Hill Briefing]
"The Future of the Right to Keep and Bear Arms," January 20, 2011 [Policy Forum]
Speeches and Testimony
"What Price Free Speech? Whistleblowers and the Ceballos Decision," June 29, 2006.
"Guns and Butter: Setting Priorities in Federal Spending in the Context of Natural Disasters, Deficits, and War," October 25, 2005.
"Strengthening the Ownership of Private Property Act of 2005," September 7, 2005.
"Legalizing Prescription Drug Importation," January 26, 2005.
"S.J. Res. 35: Proposing a Victims' Rights Amendment," July 17, 2002.
Multimedia
The Moral Implications of Deficits, Debt, and the Budget Battles Ahead with David Boaz and Amitai Etzioni (May 9, 2011) [Events, 01:14:55]
Rehabilitating Lochner: Defending Individual Rights against Progressive Reform with Gregory E. Maggs (May 2, 2011) [Events, 01:28:47]
Roger Pilon discusses the U.S. Constitution on The Bob Zadek Show (April 17, 2011) [Media Highlights - Radio, 08:13]
A Government Thumb on the Election Scale? with David H. Gans and Nick Dranias (March 22, 2011) [Events, 01:06:57]
Roger Pilon hosts the event on the one-year anniversary of Obamacare on C-SPAN 2 (March 21, 2011) [Media Highlights - TV, 01:23:08]
Feeds for Cato events: 