alito black and sean wilentz. you both for being here i want to show our viewers a headline from the washington post. historians privately worn president biden that america's democracy is teetering. the two of you were at that meeting with the president. i want to know, do you share the sentiment of the headline that democracy is teetering? i know you can't talk about the meeting with the president or what you told him but i am wondering your personal perspective. professor blackwell don't you go first? >> good morning, everybody. i believe american democracy is at a very critical point. we can either go to a refocus totally on our selves. or we can think about how to work together in of the governed by fear and disrespect for the rule of law. so i agree completely that we are really at a critical moment. i realize it might be an academic term but i want viewers to think about a river flowing through the countryside and all of a sudden it puts a folder in the powder makes a change direction. that is where we are r