No Democracy Lasts Forever

Reviews / Votes

"Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the law school at the University of California, Berkeley, pushes the tradition of constitutional criticism to new heights with No Democracy Lasts Forever. In this brief mix of political commentary and legal analysis, he confidently argues that the time has come to replace the Constitution entirely. His work provides a compelling critique of the current state of American democracy and its foundational document, revealing tensions within the Constitution that are often overlooked by the general public." -- Samuel Goldman - Wall Street Journal "Chemerinsky, the dean of Berkeley's law school, still seemed to place considerable faith in the Constitution, pleading with fellow progressives in his book We the People "not to turn their back on the Constitution and the courts. By contrast, "No Democracy Lasts Forever" is markedly pessimistic. Asserting that the Constitution, which is famously difficult to amend, has put the country "in grave danger," Chemerinsky lays out what would need to happen for a new constitutional convention - and, in the book's more sombre moments, he entertains the possibility of secession... He hopes that any divorce, if it comes, will be peaceful... The prospect of secession sounds extreme, but in suggesting that the Constitution could hasten the end of American democracy, Chemerinsky is far from alone." -- Jennifer Szalai - The New York Times "Chemerinsky does make, forcefully, valid points... he's probably right that, in a highly polarized electorate like ours, we are apt to see this happen fairly regularly. The problem is not so much that the wrong person wins as that the public loses faith in the process." -- Louis Menand - The New Yorker "[Chemerinsky's] highly readable and timely book makes abundantly clear how the Constitution, far from serving as a bulwark against democratic backsliding, is contributing to the current political woes in the US." -- Lawrence Douglas - The Times Literary Supplement