Contemporary Perspectives on the Enduring Constitution

Contemporary Perspectives on the Enduring Constitution PDF

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1991

Total Pages: 118

ISBN-13:

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The 17 essays included in this book are designed to provide educators and other interested readers with contemporary perspectives on a broad range of themes and topics concerning the U.S. Constitution. The authors are a distinguished group of historians, political scientists, legal scholars, and jurists. The essays include: "The Achievement of the Constitution as Viewed by the Leading Federalists" (Thomas L. Pangle); "The Contributions of the States to American Constitutionalism" (George Dargo); "The Drafting of the Constitution" (Margaret Pace Duckett); "The Senate the Framers Created and Its Legacy Today" (Richard A. Baker); "The First Federal Congress" (Charlene N. Bickford); "The Confirmation Process and the Separation of Powers" (Hon. Patti B. Saris); "The Article III Judiciary--The Ideal and the Reality" (Hon. Kenneth F. Ripple); "Focal Themes and Issues for Teaching about the Federal Judiciary" (Kent Newmyer); "The Work of the Supreme Court and Sources of Information about It" (Jeffrey Morris); "The Institution of the Presidency under Article II" (Thomas E. Cronin); "The Constitution and the Conduct of Foreign Affairs" (David. G. Adler); "Does the Constitution Matter to the Presidency Today?" (Nancy Kassop); "Ratifying the Constitution: The State Context" (John P. Kaminski); "The Debate over Ratification in Virginia" (Richard R. Beerman); "The Debate over Ratification in New York" (Stephen L. Schechter); "The Constitution: A Political Document with an Ambitious Legacy" (James A. Henretta); and "Women and the Constitution: The Equal Rights Amendment" (Winifred Wandersee). (DB)

Contemporary Perspectives on the Constitution and Separation of Powers

Contemporary Perspectives on the Constitution and Separation of Powers PDF

Author:

Publisher:

Published: 1990

Total Pages: 68

ISBN-13:

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A collection of essays designed to provide educators and other interested individuals with contemporary perspectives on the U.S. Constitution and separation of powers is presented. Separation of powers refers to one of the enduring principles of the U.S. constitutional system of government, in which governmental powers are subject to a division of labor in terms of function. The following essays are included: Origins of Separation of Powers and Mixed Government (Murray Dry); The Separation of Powers in Colonial and Early National Experience (Donald S. Lutz); Origins of Separation of Powers and the Judiciary (James R. Stoner, Jr.); Separation of Powers, Judicial Law Making and the Preservation of Freedom (Robert Peck); Separation of Powers and the Power of the Purse (Kate Stith); Separation of Powers and Current Relations between Congress and the President (Robert A. Strong); Checks and Balances: Adjusting the Constitution to Meet Modern Circumstances (Donald Robinson); The Framers' View of Executive Power (Daniel Troy); The Dynamics of Constitutional Decision Making: The Real Picture (Louis Fisher); Sentencing Commission Tests Separation of Powers--and Passes (John R. Steer); Tough Times for Separation of Powers (Patrick McGuigan); and The FCC and the Need for Independent Agencies (Stephen Sharp). (DB)

Contemporary Perspectives on Constitutional Interpretation

Contemporary Perspectives on Constitutional Interpretation PDF

Author: Susan J. Brison

Publisher:

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 266

ISBN-13: 9780813383934

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Brings together ten of the nation’s finest and most provocative legal scholars to present their views on constitutional interpretation. All of these papers are very recent, and four were written especially for this volume.

Framed for Posterity

Framed for Posterity PDF

Author: Ralph Ketcham

Publisher:

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13:

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Ketcham delves not only into the meaning of the documents but also into the connotations of the framers' vocabulary, the reasoning behind both accepted and rejected propositions, arguments for and against, and unstated assumptions. In his analysis, the fundamental or enduring principles are republicanism, liberty, public good, and federalism (as part of the broader doctrine of balance of powers).

We the People: The Foundation & Evolution of the U.S. Constitution

We the People: The Foundation & Evolution of the U.S. Constitution PDF

Author: James Madison

Publisher: Good Press

Published: 2024-01-17

Total Pages: 1167

ISBN-13:

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"We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America." — Preamble to the Constitution The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. Empowered with the sovereign authority of the people by the framers and the consent of the legislatures of the states, it is the source of all government powers, and also provides important limitations on the government that protect the fundamental rights of United States citizens. The Constitution acted like a colossal merger, uniting a group of states with different interests, laws, and cultures. Under America's first national government, the Articles of Confederation, the states acted together only for specific purposes. The Constitution united its citizens as members of a whole, vesting the power of the union in the people. Without it, the American Experiment might have ended as quickly as it had begun. James Madison introduced 12 amendments to the First Congress in 1789. Ten of these would go on to become what we now consider to be the Bill of Rights. One was never passed, while another dealing with Congressional salaries was not ratified until 1992, when it became the 27th Amendment. Based on the Virginia Declaration of Rights, the English Bill of Rights, the writings of the Enlightenment, and the rights defined in the Magna Carta, the Bill of Rights contains rights that many today consider to be fundamental to America. Contents: The Journal of the Debates in the Convention Which Framed the Constitution of the United States Constitutional Amendment Process Measures Proposed to Amend the Constitution Congress Creates the Bill of Rights Constitution Amendments Biographies of the Founding Fathers

American Politics

American Politics PDF

Author: William Lasser

Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing Company

Published: 1999

Total Pages: 596

ISBN-13: 9780395948088

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The Election Update of American Politics: The Enduring Constitution, 2/e, emphasizes the constitutional underpinnings of American government while incorporating current political events and issues. Lasser engages student interest by examining timely, real world topics such as the integrity of public opinion polls and the relationship between politics and the economy.

Keeping Faith with the Constitution

Keeping Faith with the Constitution PDF

Author: Goodwin Liu

Publisher: Oxford University Press

Published: 2010-08-05

Total Pages: 274

ISBN-13: 0199752834

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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 Constitution

The Constitution PDF

Author: Close Up Foundation

Publisher:

Published: 1986

Total Pages: 41

ISBN-13: 9780932765024

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Four articles expressing the views of nine prominent United States citizens about the Constitution provide a context for reflecting on the meaning of the Constitution in present-day America. In "Why Has the Constitution Endured So Long?" Don Edwards, chairman of the House Civil and Constitutional Rights Subcommittee, discusses why the Constitution worked when the Articles of Confederation did not, and explains why the Constitution has endured for two hundred years. In "States' Rights and the Constitution" Mario Cuomo, governor of New York, and Newt Gringrich, a member of the House of Representatives from Georgia, debate the principle of federalism and its effect on the ability of the state to govern. In "Civil Liberties and the Constitution" Arthur Spitzer, the director of the Washington, D.C. chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, discusses the importance of protecting the rights of minorities. In "Five Prominent Americans Reflect on the Constitution" Strom Thurmond, Judy Goldsmith, Phyllis Schafly, Barbara Jordan, and Tom Lantos discuss how the Constitution has influenced their personal and professional lives and explain what, if any, changes they would make. A case study "Extending the Right to Vote" examines how the 19th and 26th Amendments to the Constitution were ratified. Although both amendments deal with extending voting rights, the ways in which they became part of our Constitution were very different. Three classroom activities are suggested and the publication concludes with a copy of the full text of the Constitution. (APG)