How did Madison get separation through Virginia and later Congress? The Baptists, the Presbyterians, and the smaller sects hated Jefferson; to them he was a secularist of the worst kind. But Madison could get Jefferson's bill passed because the Baptists, the Presbyterians, and smaller sects who were excluded in New England and in the South got together for their own protection.

Ideal legislators do not vote their interests.

If A were not allowed his better position, B would be even worse off than he is.

If you compare the United States with Europe, my view is that what happened in Europe is that the church became deeply distrusted by people, because it sided with the monarchs. It instituted the Inquisition and became part of the repressive state apparatus. That never happened here. We don't have that history.

The idea of public reason isn't about the right answers to all these questions, but about the kinds of reasons that they ought to be answered by.

An intuitionist conception of justice is, one might say, but half a conception.

Ideally a just constitution would be a just procedure arranged to insure a just outcome.