The Spirit of the Constitution

Reviews / Votes

David Schwartz has written an indispensable study of the single most important Supreme Court case in the canon. As such, he delineates not only the meaning and importance of the case in 1819, but also the use made of it over the next two centuries as it became a central myth and symbol of the very meaning of American constitutionalism. * Sanford Levinson, author of Framed: America's 51 Constitutions and the Crisis of Governance * With compelling clarity, David Schwartz uses the many re-interpretations of McCulloch v. Maryland to illuminate the whole arc of American constitutional development, and draws a surprising but vital conclusion: it is wiser to look to the precedents set by elected legislative and executive officials, as well as our current needs, to decide what our constitutional system requires to fulfill its great goals-rather than asking 'what would John Marshall do?' * Rogers M. Smith, Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of Political Science, University of Pennsylvania and President, American Political Science Association, 2018-2019 * Professor Schwartz brilliantly shows that courts and scholars have gotten Chief Justice Marshall's famous opinion in McCulloch v Maryland wrong and misunderstood its role in the Court's history. This remarkable work of history is a must-read for anyone interested in constitutional law because Schwartz's findings should have profound consequences for Supreme Court decisionmaking in areas ranging from health care to federalism to civil rights. This is a major contribution. * William M. Treanor, Paul Dean Professor and Dean and Executive Vice President, Georgetown University Law Center * Professor Schwartz's book challenges the thinking of those who believe that the towering Marshall Court decision in McCulloch v. Maryland stands for legal principles that are clear and specific. It carefully explores the ambiguities in the Court's opinion and, in the process, illuminates some of the most fundamental problems-too often slighted or denied-of American constitutionalism. It is particularly valuable in its convincing demonstration of the impact that slavery had on the development of Commerce Clause jurisprudence, especially when that influence was not immediately apparent in the cases and often neither acknowledged nor recognized by the formal law. * Edward A. Purcell, Jr., Joseph Solomon Distinguished Professor of Law, New York Law School *