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From the early days of the American republic, the nature of government "of the people, by the people, for the people" has been disputed. This is because there are not one but two very different notions of "We the People" and popular sovereignty, which yield competing schools of constitutional thought. The democrats view We the People collectively and think popular sovereignty resides in the people as a group. They view the Constitution as a living document and contend that today's majority should not be governed by the dead hand of past majorities. The republicans view We the People as a collection of individuals. Their vision of government is that it should not reflect the will of the majority : but rather secure the preexisting rights of each and every person to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This fundamental disagreement lies at the heart of our current national divide. In Our Republican Constitution, Barnett tells the fascinating story of how this conflict arose shortly after the Revolution, leading to the adoption of a new and innovative republican constitution; and how the struggle and eventual victory over slavery led to its improvement by a newly formed Republican Party. Yet soon after, progressive academics and activists urged the courts to remake it into a democratic constitution by ignoring key passages of its text. And eventually the courts complied. Drawing from his deep knowledge of constitutional law and history : as well as his experience litigating on behalf of medical marijuana and against Obamacare : Barnett explains why We the People would benefit greatly from the renewal of our Republican Constitution, and how this can be accomplished in the courts, and political arena --Book jacket

The U.S. Constitution found in school textbooks and under glass in Washington is not the one enforced today by the Supreme Court. In Restoring the Lost Constitution, Randy Barnett argues that since the nation's founding, but especially since the 1930s, the courts have been cutting holes in the original Constitution and its amendments to eliminate the parts that protect liberty from the power of government. From the Commerce Clause, to the Necessary and Proper Clause, to the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, to the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, the Supreme Court has re

The U.S. Constitution found in school textbooks and under glass in Washington is not the one enforced today by the Supreme Court. In Restoring the Lost Constitution, Randy Barnett argues that since the nation's founding, but especially since the 1930s, the courts have been cutting holes in the original Constitution and its amendments to eliminate the parts that protect liberty from the power of government. From the Commerce Clause, to the Necessary and Proper Clause, to the Ninth and Tenth Amendments, to the Privileges or Immunities Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, the Supreme Court has rendered each of these provisions toothless.