
Constitutional Politics
Essays on Constitution Making, Maintenance, and Change
Princeton University Press
Will be published approx. on 9. December 2001
Book
Paperback/Softback
352 pages
978-0-691-08869-3 (ISBN)
Description
What does it mean to have a constitution? Scholars and students associated with Walter Murphy at Princeton University have long asked this question in their exploration of constitutional politics and judicial behavior. These scholars, concerned with the making, maintenance, and deliberate change of the Constitution, have made unique and significant contributions to our understanding of American constitutional law by going against the norm of court-centered and litigation-minded research. Beginning in the late 1970s, this new wave of academics explored questions ranging from the nature of creating the U.S. Constitution to the philosophy behind amending it. In this collection, Sotirios A. Barber and Robert P. George bring together fourteen essays by members of this Princeton group--some of the most distinguished scholars in the field. These works consider the meaning of having a constitution, the implications of particular choices in the design of constitutions, and the meaning of judicial supremacy in the interpretation of the Constitution.
The overarching ambition of this collection is to awaken a constitutionalist consciousness in its readers--to view themselves as potential makers and changers of constitutions, as opposed to mere subjects of existing arrangements. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Walter F. Murphy, John E. Finn, Christopher L. Eisgruber, James E. Fleming, Jeffrey K. Tulis, Suzette Hemberger, Stephen Macedo, Sanford Levinson, H. N. Hirsch, Wayne D. Moore, Keith E. Whittington, and Mark E. Brandon.
The overarching ambition of this collection is to awaken a constitutionalist consciousness in its readers--to view themselves as potential makers and changers of constitutions, as opposed to mere subjects of existing arrangements. In addition to the editors, the contributors are Walter F. Murphy, John E. Finn, Christopher L. Eisgruber, James E. Fleming, Jeffrey K. Tulis, Suzette Hemberger, Stephen Macedo, Sanford Levinson, H. N. Hirsch, Wayne D. Moore, Keith E. Whittington, and Mark E. Brandon.
Reviews / Votes
"All essays provide interesting insight into the concepts of judicial review and judicial activism. [An] excellent book. I highly recommend it to all."--Ruth Ann Wary, Law and Politics Book Review "A provocative, enlightening, and creative study of the intricacies and fragilities of constitutionalism in the modern day."--ChoiceMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
New Jersey
United States
Target group
Professional and scholarly
College/higher education
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 21 mm
Weight
569 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-691-08869-3 (9780691088693)
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Sotirios A. Barber | Robert P. George
Constitutional Politics
Essays on Constitution Making, Maintenance, and Change
E-Book
04/2022
1st Edition
Princeton University Press
€62.49
Available for download
Persons
Sotirios A. Barber is Professor of Government at the University of Notre Dame and is the author of a number of articles and books on the constitution, including On What the Constitution Means and The Constitution of Judicial Power. Robert P. George is McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence at Princeton University. He is the author of In Defense of Natural Law and editor of Great Cases in Constitutional Law (Princeton).
Content
Acknowledgments ix Introduction 1 1. Alternative Political Systems by Walter F. Murphy 9 2. The Civic Constitution: Some Preliminaries by John E. Finn 41 3. Judicial Supremacy and Constitutional Distortion by Christopher L. Eisgruber 70 4. We the Exceptional American people by James E. Fleming 91 5. Constitution and Revolution by Jeffrey K. Tulis 116 6. What Did They Think They Were Doing When They Wrote the U.S. Constitution, and Why Should We Care? By Suzette Hemberger 128 7. Notes on Constitutional Maintenance by Sotirios A. Barber 162 8. Transformative Constitutionalism and the Case of Religion: Defending the Moderate Hegemony of Liberalism by Stephen Macedo 167 9. Promoting Diversity in the Public Schools (Or, to What Event Does the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment Hinder the Establishment of More Genuinely Multicultural Schools?) by Sanford Levinson 193 10. Second Thoughts on the First Amendment by H. N. Hirsch 223 11. Constitutional Citizenship by Wayne D. Moore 238 12. The Political Foundations of Judicial Supremacy by Keith E. Whittington 261 13. Constitutionalism and Constitutional Failure by Mark E. Brandon 298 14. Justice, Legitimacy, and Allegiance: "The End of Democracy?" Symposium Revisited by Robert P. George 314 Notes on Contributors 329 Index 331