The Bigger Problem With The Hamilton Performance At the Capitol On January 6

"Dear Theodosia" is sung by Aaron Burr, who was an accused insurrectionist.

Yesterday, a ceremony was held at the Capitol to mark the first anniversary of January 6, 2021. During the proceedings, Speaker Pelosi invited Lin Manuel Miranda, and cast members of Hamilton, to perform the song "Dear Theodosia."

.@SpeakerPelosi introduces @Lin_Manuel who introduces other Hamilton cast members to sing "Dear Theodosia." pic.twitter.com/rNRprgGrau

— CSPAN (@cspan) January 6, 2022

This song, which is one of the most beautiful in the show, is performed by Aaron Burr. Of course, the Jefferson Administration charged Burr with treason. According to some accounts, Burr actually hatched a plan to conquer North America, and overthrow the American government. The history is muddy. In Trump v. Vance, Chief Roberts offered a sanitized version of this background. In any event, celebrating an accused insurrectionist is not the right symbolism for January 6.

I am a huge fan of the Hamilton musical. I saw it during the original Broadway run, alas, with Miranda's understudy. It was very disconcerting to see the actor who usually portrayed Madison playing the role of Hamilton. In 2018, Miranda was also kind enough to sign my pocket Constitution at the Supreme Court.

Breaking news from #scotus. @Lin_Manuel, who was sitting to my left, signed my pocket constitution. It is very nice to have Hamilton on my side. pic.twitter.com/dbmRLJw1Lj

— Josh Blackman (@JoshMBlackman) April 25, 2018

Comments

[Darth Chocolate]

Why should we care about substance when style is far more important?

[Sigivald]

It's fair to knock style here, when it is the political currency of the day, and these optics would be "terrible" - and screamed from rooftops as such - if the parties were reversed?

I don't give a flying copulation about it, myself, no matter who does it.

[Bob from Ohio]

Burr and Hamilton were also Continental Army officers, armed insurrectionists.

[Jerry B.]

As were Washington Gates, Greene, various Lees, and numerous Founding Fathers and Framers.

I assume Democrats would like them all tried for treason, and the Colonies returned to Great Britain.

[Jerry B.]

...Washington, Gates...

An edit feature would certainly be nice.

[Sigivald]

It's only treason if you lose.

And since the Democrats (and Republicans) are Americans, not Britons, they (we, and I'm not even an R) don't care about the abstract concept of treason, but treason against hte United States.

(I don't agree with them that the 1/6 nonsense constituted anything Super Serial, but I would also agree that we can and should celebrate certain treasons against hostile nations, for instance, while also being against treason against the United States.

If someone betrayed Germany in 1942 to help the US, we would not castigate them for being traitors - we'd call them friends of the free world.

Same thing today if someone turncoats on Iran or the People's Republic of China.)

[A Thinking Mind]

Treason also might require an intent to overthrow the government instead of urinating in a Congressman's office. Nobody thought these 250 yahoos were suddenly going to declare themselves the new Congress that everyone was now suddenly forced to obey.

Rioting is bad. So are Reichstag coups.

[Martinned]

Which is presumably why no one's accused them of treason.

[zztop8970]

Not in a legal proceeding, but many have done so in the media.

[Jerry B.]

The Washington Post commentariat are screaming for treason indictments, and the Post is encouraging this. I’d expect a lot of Democrats are at least thinking this as well.

[Purple Martin]

So, Jerry and zz, go ahead and name some names. I keep track of both sides and haven't heard any meaningful Treason accusations for Jan 6 actions. Sedition & Insurrection, yes, but not treason.

I'd lay even money, though, that as DoJ works its way up from the less serious to more serious cases, some the last charges to be brought will be for sedition. That only requires talking with one other person (that is, planning) about taking an action determined to be against the USA.

The most serious charges (and guilty pleas) so far are assault of a police officer, and obstruction of a government proceeding. Two people talking about those acts before doing them? Sedition.

Reason I won't give better than even odds, though, is that Sedition has the same felony max penalty as the Obstruction and Assault charges—which are much easier to prove beyond a reasonable doubt. Why go for the harder second when you can already give them max for the easier first?

Depends on how high up a person they can pin it on, I'd guess. Especially if the higher up person was provably involved only in planning or direction, but not the action itself. In that case, both the planner and doer commit the same seditious act.

[Michael P]

Lawprof Carlton Larson apparently thought it was treason: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/apr/05/the-capitol-attack-treason ... but he changed his mind later for some reason.

Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) accused Jim Jordan of being a traitor: "He's a traitor to the Constitution of the United States. He has been a traitor to the Constitution of the United States for quite a while, and now we actually have it in text."

Georgia state Rep. Teri Anulewicz called a planned vigil for "J6 Patriots" an "homage to treason". Her blue-checked Tweet is still up.

Some MSNBC person on Morning Joe apparently called some 1/6-related document "a paper trail of treason", but the context seems to only be in video form.

[Purple Martin]

Certainly. Had the American Revolution been unsuccessful (and it was no sure thing), its leaders fully understood they would be considered rebels and traitors. They knew their fates would have been, in the words of Benjamin Franklin, to "surely hang separately." History is written by the winners so that's how we would remember them today.

But that didn't happen. They won, were the good guys (mostly, given the standards of the times), and so instead are remembered as our venerated Founders.

There's some intriguing academic speculation, however, that had the American Revolution been nipped in the bud (and again, it was a close thing right at the beginning), that not gaining the status of states, the colonies would have gone the way of Canada, eventually becoming a British Commonwealth, and then an independent country.

Part of that speculation is that slavery might have followed the path it took in Britain, disappearing more quickly than happened with an independent USA and its Constitutional "3/5th" cave that delayed even the beginning of a resolution for 75 years. Might make an interesting alternate history novel.

[OtisAH]

I’d love to hear how performing the tune at the 1/6 ceremony was a “celebration of Aaron Burr”? Did they announce “This one goes out to a great American traitor, Aaron Burr”?

[rsteinmetz]

I gotta ask what was Lin Manuel Miranda doing at the Supreme Court? It seems an unusual place for an actor, songwriter, singer, playwright, producer, and film director to hang out.

[AmosArch]

Its all theatre now. Pun intended.

[Rev. Arthur L. Kirkland]

Pun intended, but apostrophe not?

[Flight-ER-Doc]

Our tax dollars at waste

[AmosArch]

They really want to turn this into a thing. How can even a child see this and take them seriously?

[Alpheus W Drinkwater]

In case you haven't noticed, law professors are blogging about it!

[BillyG]

Aaron Burr was accused and tried using falsified evidence. Then president Jefferson was abusing the power of his office to try to get a conviction. Sounds like pretty accurate symbolism to me.

[SykesFive]

"Dear Theodosia" is sung by Burr and Hamilton--it's a duet and maybe could have been better titled. It acknowledges how much the two men had in common. They each have a long passage directed to their children "Dear Theodosia" then "Oh Phillip" then the similarity is made clear by the passage beginning "My father wasn't around/my father wasn't around." Sure, they ultimately had different views on what the nation should become and ended up bitter rivals. To the extent the song has current political valence, it reminds us that the other side loves their children too and believes they are doing the right thing. So I do see it as an appropriate piece for reconciliation.

And, now that I've watched the video, in fact this is exactly how LMM sets the song up in the video for the commemoration.

So I guess my only question is whether Blackman just decided to go with his own "wrong song" before or after considering how LMM tried to position it.

[Rev. Arthur L. Kirkland]

" So I guess my only question is whether Blackman just decided to go with his own "wrong song" before or after considering how LMM tried to position it. "

Some people have difficulty navigating social clues, others' emotions, change, etc.

[Jerry B.]

Thanks for admitting that.

[Sarcastr0]

Did you see the Dems did something really cringey and just decide you needed to one up them by taking things as literally as possible?

[Titus PUllo]

Who the f cares. Hamilton sucks. It is horrible.

For 20 years Congress funded wars that killed hundreds of thousands of people of "color" to use the woke term..droned thousands of children into little pieces. Pelosi got scared? Seriously..

[Sarcastr0]

Hamilton is fine; it's a fun musical, and really well executed.

[Cal Cetín]

Relevant to a legal blog - after offing Hamilton and evading an indictment, Burr returned to the Senate - he was still Vice President - to preside over the impeachment of Justice Samuel Chase. Some Federalist wag said that it was customary for the murderer to be arraigned before the judge, but here the judge was being arraigned before the murderer.

[Jaypd]

How is it possible no one has pointed out that Blackman, the cheerleader for the death of the rule of law on this site, had a fucking artist sign the Constitution. He's so openly against our entire system of government he bleeds it.

Eugene Volokh-you claim to care about this country. Get rid of this piece of shit.

[John F. Carr]

"Treason doth neuer prosper, what's the reason?
For if it prosper, none dare call it Treason."

[Ohio Lawyer]

Celebrity worship? Ask for an autograph? Wow, hadn't thought of doing that since I was 12 or so when I got Gus Bell's at a Reds game.