Principles and Compromise: The Spirit and Practice of the U.S. Constitution (Revised Edition)

Author: Wang Xi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-08-01
Features: Why has the U.S. Constitution maintained such a long life? Is the U.S. Constitution a tool of a certain class in American society or of all classes? Where does the supremacy of the U.S. Constitution manifest? How does the U.S. constitutional mechanism operate? Why did the U.S. Constitution tolerate such an unthinkable evil as slavery under the banners of "freedom" and "equality"? Is power checks and balances a driving force for American development, a hindrance, or both? What are the differences between U.S. federalism in the 1990s and that in the 1790s? Was the U.S. Civil War fought to abolish slavery and to preserve the unity of the Union? What is the connection between the two? How were marginalized groups (including Black people, Native Americans, other minorities, women, etc.) incorporated into the constitutional system? Why did this incorporation proceed so slowly? Why did the U.S. Supreme Court tolerate policies that promoted racial segregation in the 19th century but later led the charge to declare racial segregation contrary to the spirit of the U.S. Constitution in the mid-20th century? Why did the immensely powerful Nixon have to resign due to the Watergate scandal, yet his resignation had no impact whatsoever on the stability of the American system? Why did the "rights revolution" of the 1960s lead to a crisis in the definition of civil rights and liberties? What is the interaction between the expansion of U.S. international power and the constitutional reforms carried out domestically? This book is a historical study of the questions surrounding the development of the U.S. Constitution, offering a serious and profound examination of the document.