Author: Goodwin Liu
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199752834
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
Chief Justice John Marshall argued that a constitution "requires that only its great outlines should be marked [and] its important objects designated." Ours is "intended to endure for ages to come, and consequently, to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs." In recent years, Marshall's great truths have been challenged by proponents of originalism and strict construction. Such legal thinkers as Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia argue that the Constitution must be construed and applied as it was when the Framers wrote it. In Keeping Faith with the Constitution, three legal authorities make the case for Marshall's vision. They describe their approach as "constitutional fidelity"--not to how the Framers would have applied the Constitution, but to the text and principles of the Constitution itself. The original understanding of the text is one source of interpretation, but not the only one; to preserve the meaning and authority of the document, to keep it vital, applications of the Constitution must be shaped by precedent, historical experience, practical consequence, and societal change. The authors range across the history of constitutional interpretation to show how this approach has been the source of our greatest advances, from Brown v. Board of Education to the New Deal, from the Miranda decision to the expansion of women's rights. They delve into the complexities of voting rights, the malapportionment of legislative districts, speech freedoms, civil liberties and the War on Terror, and the evolution of checks and balances. The Constitution's framers could never have imagined DNA, global warming, or even women's equality. Yet these and many more realities shape our lives and outlook. Our Constitution will remain vital into our changing future, the authors write, if judges remain true to this rich tradition of adaptation and fidelity.
Keeping Faith with the Constitution
Author: Goodwin Liu
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199752834
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
Chief Justice John Marshall argued that a constitution "requires that only its great outlines should be marked [and] its important objects designated." Ours is "intended to endure for ages to come, and consequently, to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs." In recent years, Marshall's great truths have been challenged by proponents of originalism and strict construction. Such legal thinkers as Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia argue that the Constitution must be construed and applied as it was when the Framers wrote it. In Keeping Faith with the Constitution, three legal authorities make the case for Marshall's vision. They describe their approach as "constitutional fidelity"--not to how the Framers would have applied the Constitution, but to the text and principles of the Constitution itself. The original understanding of the text is one source of interpretation, but not the only one; to preserve the meaning and authority of the document, to keep it vital, applications of the Constitution must be shaped by precedent, historical experience, practical consequence, and societal change. The authors range across the history of constitutional interpretation to show how this approach has been the source of our greatest advances, from Brown v. Board of Education to the New Deal, from the Miranda decision to the expansion of women's rights. They delve into the complexities of voting rights, the malapportionment of legislative districts, speech freedoms, civil liberties and the War on Terror, and the evolution of checks and balances. The Constitution's framers could never have imagined DNA, global warming, or even women's equality. Yet these and many more realities shape our lives and outlook. Our Constitution will remain vital into our changing future, the authors write, if judges remain true to this rich tradition of adaptation and fidelity.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199752834
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 274
Book Description
Chief Justice John Marshall argued that a constitution "requires that only its great outlines should be marked [and] its important objects designated." Ours is "intended to endure for ages to come, and consequently, to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs." In recent years, Marshall's great truths have been challenged by proponents of originalism and strict construction. Such legal thinkers as Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia argue that the Constitution must be construed and applied as it was when the Framers wrote it. In Keeping Faith with the Constitution, three legal authorities make the case for Marshall's vision. They describe their approach as "constitutional fidelity"--not to how the Framers would have applied the Constitution, but to the text and principles of the Constitution itself. The original understanding of the text is one source of interpretation, but not the only one; to preserve the meaning and authority of the document, to keep it vital, applications of the Constitution must be shaped by precedent, historical experience, practical consequence, and societal change. The authors range across the history of constitutional interpretation to show how this approach has been the source of our greatest advances, from Brown v. Board of Education to the New Deal, from the Miranda decision to the expansion of women's rights. They delve into the complexities of voting rights, the malapportionment of legislative districts, speech freedoms, civil liberties and the War on Terror, and the evolution of checks and balances. The Constitution's framers could never have imagined DNA, global warming, or even women's equality. Yet these and many more realities shape our lives and outlook. Our Constitution will remain vital into our changing future, the authors write, if judges remain true to this rich tradition of adaptation and fidelity.
The Farmers' Alliance History and Agricultural Digest
Author: Nelson A. Dunning
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Agricultural societies
Languages : en
Pages : 842
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Agricultural societies
Languages : en
Pages : 842
Book Description
The Framers' Coup
Author: Michael J. Klarman
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199942048
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 881
Book Description
Americans revere their Constitution. However, most of us are unaware how tumultuous and improbable the drafting and ratification processes were. As Benjamin Franklin keenly observed, any assembly of men bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe that they also had interests. Based on prodigious research and told largely through the voices of the participants, Michael Klarman's The Framers' Coup narrates how the Framers' clashing interests shaped the Constitution--and American history itself. The Philadelphia convention could easily have been a failure, and the risk of collapse was always present. Had the convention dissolved, any number of adverse outcomes could have resulted, including civil war or a reversion to monarchy. Not only does Klarman capture the knife's-edge atmosphere of the convention, he populates his narrative with riveting and colorful stories: the rebellion of debtor farmers in Massachusetts; George Washington's uncertainty about whether to attend; Gunning Bedford's threat to turn to a European prince if the small states were denied equal representation in the Senate; slave staters' threats to take their marbles and go home if denied representation for their slaves; Hamilton's quasi-monarchist speech to the convention; and Patrick Henry's herculean efforts to defeat the Constitution in Virginia through demagoguery and conspiracy theories. The Framers' Coup is more than a compendium of great stories, however, and the powerful arguments that feature throughout will reshape our understanding of the nation's founding. Simply put, the Constitutional Convention almost didn't happen, and once it happened, it almost failed. And, even after the convention succeeded, the Constitution it produced almost failed to be ratified. Just as importantly, the Constitution was hardly the product of philosophical reflections by brilliant, disinterested statesmen, but rather ordinary interest group politics. Multiple conflicting interests had a say, from creditors and debtors to city dwellers and backwoodsmen. The upper class overwhelmingly supported the Constitution; many working class colonists were more dubious. Slave states and nonslave states had different perspectives on how well the Constitution served their interests. Ultimately, both the Constitution's content and its ratification process raise troubling questions about democratic legitimacy. The Federalists were eager to avoid full-fledged democratic deliberation over the Constitution, and the document that was ratified was stacked in favor of their preferences. And in terms of substance, the Constitution was a significant departure from the more democratic state constitutions of the 1770s. Definitive and authoritative, The Framers' Coup explains why the Framers preferred such a constitution and how they managed to persuade the country to adopt it. We have lived with the consequences, both positive and negative, ever since.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199942048
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 881
Book Description
Americans revere their Constitution. However, most of us are unaware how tumultuous and improbable the drafting and ratification processes were. As Benjamin Franklin keenly observed, any assembly of men bring with them "all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests and their selfish views." One need not deny that the Framers had good intentions in order to believe that they also had interests. Based on prodigious research and told largely through the voices of the participants, Michael Klarman's The Framers' Coup narrates how the Framers' clashing interests shaped the Constitution--and American history itself. The Philadelphia convention could easily have been a failure, and the risk of collapse was always present. Had the convention dissolved, any number of adverse outcomes could have resulted, including civil war or a reversion to monarchy. Not only does Klarman capture the knife's-edge atmosphere of the convention, he populates his narrative with riveting and colorful stories: the rebellion of debtor farmers in Massachusetts; George Washington's uncertainty about whether to attend; Gunning Bedford's threat to turn to a European prince if the small states were denied equal representation in the Senate; slave staters' threats to take their marbles and go home if denied representation for their slaves; Hamilton's quasi-monarchist speech to the convention; and Patrick Henry's herculean efforts to defeat the Constitution in Virginia through demagoguery and conspiracy theories. The Framers' Coup is more than a compendium of great stories, however, and the powerful arguments that feature throughout will reshape our understanding of the nation's founding. Simply put, the Constitutional Convention almost didn't happen, and once it happened, it almost failed. And, even after the convention succeeded, the Constitution it produced almost failed to be ratified. Just as importantly, the Constitution was hardly the product of philosophical reflections by brilliant, disinterested statesmen, but rather ordinary interest group politics. Multiple conflicting interests had a say, from creditors and debtors to city dwellers and backwoodsmen. The upper class overwhelmingly supported the Constitution; many working class colonists were more dubious. Slave states and nonslave states had different perspectives on how well the Constitution served their interests. Ultimately, both the Constitution's content and its ratification process raise troubling questions about democratic legitimacy. The Federalists were eager to avoid full-fledged democratic deliberation over the Constitution, and the document that was ratified was stacked in favor of their preferences. And in terms of substance, the Constitution was a significant departure from the more democratic state constitutions of the 1770s. Definitive and authoritative, The Framers' Coup explains why the Framers preferred such a constitution and how they managed to persuade the country to adopt it. We have lived with the consequences, both positive and negative, ever since.
The South Dakota State Constitution
Author: Patrick M. Garry
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199378711
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 344
Book Description
South Dakota was the first state in the nation's history to adopt the Initiative and Referendum, making it permissible for the people to initiate a constitutional amendment, on a statewide level in 1898. While it continues to be a controversial procedure, Patrick Garry discusses this in-depth while providing the only definitive reference resource on the South Dakota Constitution, including all significant court decisions interpreting each Section. The South Dakota Constitution features the rich history and development of constitutionalism in the state. It provides the complete text of the state's current constitution, with each section accompanied by commentary that explains the provision and traces its origins and its interpretation by the courts and by other governmental bodies. Offering in-depth, section-by-section analysis of the entire constitution, it shows the many significant changes within the state of South Dakota that have been made since the constitution's initial drafting. The book concludes with a bibliography, a table of cases cited in the volume, and a topical index making this volume a highly detailed historical companion for students, scholars, practitioners, and all readers interested in state constitutional issues and the history of South Dakota's statehood. The Oxford Commentaries on the State Constitutions of the United States is an important series that reflects a renewed international interest in constitutional history and provides expert insight into each of the 50 state constitutions. Each volume in this innovative series contains a historical overview of the state's constitutional development, a section-by-section analysis of its current constitution, and a comprehensive guide to further research. Under the expert editorship of Professor G. Alan Tarr, Director of the Center on State Constitutional Studies at Rutgers University, this series provides essential reference tools for understanding state constitutional law. Books in the series can be purchased individually or as part of a complete set, giving readers unmatched access to these important political documents.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199378711
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 344
Book Description
South Dakota was the first state in the nation's history to adopt the Initiative and Referendum, making it permissible for the people to initiate a constitutional amendment, on a statewide level in 1898. While it continues to be a controversial procedure, Patrick Garry discusses this in-depth while providing the only definitive reference resource on the South Dakota Constitution, including all significant court decisions interpreting each Section. The South Dakota Constitution features the rich history and development of constitutionalism in the state. It provides the complete text of the state's current constitution, with each section accompanied by commentary that explains the provision and traces its origins and its interpretation by the courts and by other governmental bodies. Offering in-depth, section-by-section analysis of the entire constitution, it shows the many significant changes within the state of South Dakota that have been made since the constitution's initial drafting. The book concludes with a bibliography, a table of cases cited in the volume, and a topical index making this volume a highly detailed historical companion for students, scholars, practitioners, and all readers interested in state constitutional issues and the history of South Dakota's statehood. The Oxford Commentaries on the State Constitutions of the United States is an important series that reflects a renewed international interest in constitutional history and provides expert insight into each of the 50 state constitutions. Each volume in this innovative series contains a historical overview of the state's constitutional development, a section-by-section analysis of its current constitution, and a comprehensive guide to further research. Under the expert editorship of Professor G. Alan Tarr, Director of the Center on State Constitutional Studies at Rutgers University, this series provides essential reference tools for understanding state constitutional law. Books in the series can be purchased individually or as part of a complete set, giving readers unmatched access to these important political documents.
Populist Vanguard
Author: Robert C. McMath Jr.
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469639947
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 240
Book Description
Significant as a political, economic, and social organization, the southern Farmers' Alliance was the largest and most influential farmers' organization in the history of the United States until the rise of the American Farm Bureau Federation. McMath suggests that the ideas advanced by the People's party in the 1890s had been incubated within the alliance and that the shared experience of 1.5 million rural Americans helped give those ideas power in the Populist crusade. Originally published 1976. A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.
Publisher: UNC Press Books
ISBN: 1469639947
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 240
Book Description
Significant as a political, economic, and social organization, the southern Farmers' Alliance was the largest and most influential farmers' organization in the history of the United States until the rise of the American Farm Bureau Federation. McMath suggests that the ideas advanced by the People's party in the 1890s had been incubated within the alliance and that the shared experience of 1.5 million rural Americans helped give those ideas power in the Populist crusade. Originally published 1976. A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.
History of the Wheel and Alliance and the Impending Revolution
Author: W. Scott Morgan
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Agriculture
Languages : en
Pages : 790
Book Description
Official history of the Farmers' Alliance, an organized agrarian economic movement among American farmers.
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Agriculture
Languages : en
Pages : 790
Book Description
Official history of the Farmers' Alliance, an organized agrarian economic movement among American farmers.
The Oxford Handbook of Populism
Author: Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198803567
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 737
Book Description
The Oxford Handbook of Populism presents the state of the art of research on populism from the perspective of Political Science. The book features work from the leading experts in the field, and synthesizes the main strands of research in four compact sections: concepts, issues, regions, and normative debates. Due to its breath, The Oxford Handbook of Populism is an invaluable resource for those interested in the study of populism, but also forexperts in each of the topics discussed, who will benefit from accounts of current discussions and research gaps, as well as a map of new directions in the study of populism.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0198803567
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 737
Book Description
The Oxford Handbook of Populism presents the state of the art of research on populism from the perspective of Political Science. The book features work from the leading experts in the field, and synthesizes the main strands of research in four compact sections: concepts, issues, regions, and normative debates. Due to its breath, The Oxford Handbook of Populism is an invaluable resource for those interested in the study of populism, but also forexperts in each of the topics discussed, who will benefit from accounts of current discussions and research gaps, as well as a map of new directions in the study of populism.
The Louisiana Populist Movement, 1881-1900
Author: Donna A. Barnes
Publisher: LSU Press
ISBN: 0807137278
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 342
Book Description
The Populist movement of the late nineteenth century represents one of the largest third-party challenges in American history. Throughout the South widespread drops in crop prices led to agrarian revolt, which contributed to the movement's popularity. Yet, in the largely rural state of Louisiana, despite the political group's focus on empowering distressed farmers, this challenge proved far less successful. In Donna A. Barnes's The Louisiana Populist Movement the question of ineffectuality makes an intriguing political case study of the Pelican State and Populism. Emerging in the 1890s as the political wing of the Southern Farmers' Alliance, the Populists, or People's Party, garnered the support of millions of rural southerners. But the affiliated Louisiana party struggled to spread beyond a limited number of parishes in the northern and central part of the state. According to Barnes, the movement's relatively poor mobilization record provides an excellent opportunity to explore factors that impede social growth. Most scholars, she contends, often focus on the emergence and rise of successful political organizations and overlook the valuable observations to be found within less successful movements, such as Louisiana Populism. In her evaluation, Barnes points to racial division as the factor that undermined the Populist cause in Louisiana. The Democratic Party saw the agenda of the Populist movement as a threat to white supremacy and thus, when paired with the 1898 state constitution that disfranchised poor rural whites and most blacks, predestined the People's Party to poor public reception. Based on an array of archival research, Barnes's study offers the definitive source for the history of the Louisiana Populist Movement as well as a multidimensional theoretical analysis of the factors behind the movement's failure.
Publisher: LSU Press
ISBN: 0807137278
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 342
Book Description
The Populist movement of the late nineteenth century represents one of the largest third-party challenges in American history. Throughout the South widespread drops in crop prices led to agrarian revolt, which contributed to the movement's popularity. Yet, in the largely rural state of Louisiana, despite the political group's focus on empowering distressed farmers, this challenge proved far less successful. In Donna A. Barnes's The Louisiana Populist Movement the question of ineffectuality makes an intriguing political case study of the Pelican State and Populism. Emerging in the 1890s as the political wing of the Southern Farmers' Alliance, the Populists, or People's Party, garnered the support of millions of rural southerners. But the affiliated Louisiana party struggled to spread beyond a limited number of parishes in the northern and central part of the state. According to Barnes, the movement's relatively poor mobilization record provides an excellent opportunity to explore factors that impede social growth. Most scholars, she contends, often focus on the emergence and rise of successful political organizations and overlook the valuable observations to be found within less successful movements, such as Louisiana Populism. In her evaluation, Barnes points to racial division as the factor that undermined the Populist cause in Louisiana. The Democratic Party saw the agenda of the Populist movement as a threat to white supremacy and thus, when paired with the 1898 state constitution that disfranchised poor rural whites and most blacks, predestined the People's Party to poor public reception. Based on an array of archival research, Barnes's study offers the definitive source for the history of the Louisiana Populist Movement as well as a multidimensional theoretical analysis of the factors behind the movement's failure.
The Gilded Age
Author: Mark Twain
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : City and town life
Languages : en
Pages : 380
Book Description
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : City and town life
Languages : en
Pages : 380
Book Description
We Have Not a Government
Author: George William Van Cleve
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022664152X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 411
Book Description
In 1783, as the Revolutionary War came to a close, Alexander Hamilton resigned in disgust from the Continental Congress after it refused to consider a fundamental reform of the Articles of Confederation. Just four years later, that same government collapsed, and Congress grudgingly agreed to support the 1787 Philadelphia Constitutional Convention, which altered the Articles beyond recognition. What occurred during this remarkably brief interval to cause the Confederation to lose public confidence and inspire Americans to replace it with a dramatically more flexible and powerful government? We Have Not a Government is the story of this contentious moment in American history. In George William Van Cleve’s book, we encounter a sharply divided America. The Confederation faced massive war debts with virtually no authority to compel its members to pay them. It experienced punishing trade restrictions and strong resistance to American territorial expansion from powerful European governments. Bitter sectional divisions that deadlocked the Continental Congress arose from exploding western settlement. And a deep, long-lasting recession led to sharp controversies and social unrest across the country amid roiling debates over greatly increased taxes, debt relief, and paper money. Van Cleve shows how these remarkable stresses transformed the Confederation into a stalemate government and eventually led previously conflicting states, sections, and interest groups to advocate for a union powerful enough to govern a continental empire. Touching on the stories of a wide-ranging cast of characters—including John Adams, Patrick Henry, Daniel Shays, George Washington, and Thayendanegea—Van Cleve makes clear that it was the Confederation’s failures that created a political crisis and led to the 1787 Constitution. Clearly argued and superbly written, We Have Not a Government is a must-read history of this crucial period in our nation’s early life.
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022664152X
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 411
Book Description
In 1783, as the Revolutionary War came to a close, Alexander Hamilton resigned in disgust from the Continental Congress after it refused to consider a fundamental reform of the Articles of Confederation. Just four years later, that same government collapsed, and Congress grudgingly agreed to support the 1787 Philadelphia Constitutional Convention, which altered the Articles beyond recognition. What occurred during this remarkably brief interval to cause the Confederation to lose public confidence and inspire Americans to replace it with a dramatically more flexible and powerful government? We Have Not a Government is the story of this contentious moment in American history. In George William Van Cleve’s book, we encounter a sharply divided America. The Confederation faced massive war debts with virtually no authority to compel its members to pay them. It experienced punishing trade restrictions and strong resistance to American territorial expansion from powerful European governments. Bitter sectional divisions that deadlocked the Continental Congress arose from exploding western settlement. And a deep, long-lasting recession led to sharp controversies and social unrest across the country amid roiling debates over greatly increased taxes, debt relief, and paper money. Van Cleve shows how these remarkable stresses transformed the Confederation into a stalemate government and eventually led previously conflicting states, sections, and interest groups to advocate for a union powerful enough to govern a continental empire. Touching on the stories of a wide-ranging cast of characters—including John Adams, Patrick Henry, Daniel Shays, George Washington, and Thayendanegea—Van Cleve makes clear that it was the Confederation’s failures that created a political crisis and led to the 1787 Constitution. Clearly argued and superbly written, We Have Not a Government is a must-read history of this crucial period in our nation’s early life.