Constitution Day, Sept. 17
September 5, 2013
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
U.S. Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes, who represented Maryland in Congress for 35 years and held leadership positions on a number of vital legislative committees, will visit the University of Baltimore College of Public Affairs on Tuesday, Sept. 17 as keynote speaker for the University's celebration of Constitution Day. The event will take place beginning at 5:30 p.m. in the Town Hall in the UB Learning Commons, 1415 Maryland Ave. A light reception will start at 4:45 p.m. in the same space. The event is free and open to the public. (R.S.V.P. required; go here to submit.)
Also as part of the day's activities, faculty members from the UB School of Law will lead a panel discussion on the Supreme Court's upcoming term, beginning at noon in the school's Moot Court Room at 1401 N. Charles St. Faculty panelists will include Kimberly Brown, Gilda Daniels, Garrett Epps, William Hubbard and Colin Starger. Their talk will be moderated by Prof. C.J. Peters. (R.S.V.P. required; go here to submit.)
Constitution Day is an annual national celebration designed to renew the nation's familiarity with the tenets of its founding document. On September 17, 1787, the U.S. Constitution was signed by the delegates to the Constitutional Convention and prepared for ratification by the states.
Sen. Sarbanes, whose sponsorship of the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley Act for reforming federal securities law is arguably his crowning achievement as a lawmaker, will discuss the state of the Constitution, congressional oversight, recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions and more. He will be joined onstage by John Willis, executive in residence in the College of Public Affairs, former Maryland Secretary of State and co-author of Maryland Politics and Government, an analysis of the state's political identity, policies, and governmental system published in 2012.
Sen. Sarbanes's legislative career began in 1966, when he won a seat representing Baltimore City in the Maryland House of Delegates. Four years later, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives. During his six years there, he served on the Judiciary Committee, the Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, and the Select Committee on House Reorganization. In August 1974, Sen. Sarbanes's fellow Democrats chose him to introduce the first article of impeachment, for obstruction of justice, against President Richard Nixon, as a result of the ongoing Watergate scandal.
Sen. Sarbanes was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1976, and re-elected in 1982, 1988, 1994 and 2000. During his tenure, he served on the Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee (ranking member), the Special Whitewater Committee (ranking member), and on the Foreign Relations, Budget and Joint Economic committees, all as a senior member. He announced his retirement from the Senate in 2006.
The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the College of Public Affairs, the Merrick School of Business, the UB School of Law and the Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences.