# Popes and Presidents

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/amarica-s-constitution-3511925/popes-and-presidents
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/amarica-s-constitution-3511925/popes-and-presidents.md
Podcast: [Amarica's Constitution](https://stenobird.com/podcast/amarica-s-constitution-3511925)
Published: 2026-04-23T01:12:12+00:00
Episode link: https://amaricasconstitution.podbean.com/e/popes-and-presidents/
Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/jz3h8sa67uszxyan/275_Popes_and_Presidents.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/amarica-s-constitution-3511925/episodes/popes-and-presidents
Duration seconds: 5725

## Resource

The President has picked a fight with the Bishop of Rome, Pope Leo X. Putting aside some of the distasteful elements of language and hubris, we ask where this fits in with notions of church and state in a democracy. What is the constitutional doctrine - is it “separation?” Where does it come from, historically and legally? A general theory of such things can help us make sense - well, maybe not of everything that is said these days, but perhaps of the numerous cases that are percolating to and arriving at the Supreme Court. And in a special treat, we continue our conversation with Sarah Isgur on her new book, Last Branch Standing, and look more deeply at the patterns of judicial behavior that have emerged from several of the justices, among other things.

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/amarica-s-constitution-3511925/episodes/popes-and-presidents/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/amarica-s-constitution-3511925/popes-and-presidents.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.