Constitutional Commentary articles from June 2001

Constitutional Commentary archives from June 2001

The Brethren: Inside the Supreme Court.
June 22, 2001... Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong's book The Brethren (1) was a 1979 blockbuster that generated extensive controversy both inside and outside the Court. Their sources had allowed Woodward and Armstrong access to private documents detailing the...

The Commerce Clause, the political question doctrine, and Morrison.
June 22, 2001... INTRODUCTION The Supreme Court's ruling in United States v. Morrison (1)--which invalidated parts of the Violence Against Women Act on federalism grounds--is one of the most significant Commerce Clause decisions in recent years for several...

Why the Supreme Court should not have decided the presidential election of 2000.
June 22, 2001... Bush v. Gore, (1) the Supreme Court's final decision and last exercise of its immense power of judicial review in the 20th century, will be one of its most discussed rulings for many years to come (although rarely cited--I predict--for its...

Bush v. Gore: looking at Baker v. Carr in a conservative mirror.(federal judicial intervention in state electoral matters)
June 22, 2001... A Southern state engages in electoral shenanigans, thereby precipitating a national crisis. Most United States Supreme Court Justices conclude that the ordinary political process will not remedy the problem. Unfortunately for them, the...

Were there adequate state grounds in Bush v. Gore?(Supreme Court review of state court decisions)
June 22, 2001... Few Supreme Court decisions provoke the immediate and intensely negative verdict that law professors passed on Bush v. Gore. (1) It usually takes some time for scholars to digest the opinions, reflect on the majority's reasoning, and render...

Our Secret Constitution: How Lincoln Redefined American Democracy.
June 22, 2001... OUR SECRET CONSTITUTION: HOW LINCOLN REDEFINED AMERICAN DEMOCRACY. By George P. Fletcher. (1) Oxford University Press. 2001. Pp. ix, 292. $25.00 Exactly four years after the surrender... Robert Anderson returned to raise his old flag over...

The Passions of Law.
June 22, 2001... THE PASSIONS OF LAW. Edited by Susan A. Bandes. (1) New York University Press. 1999. Pp. 367. $35.00. Law encounters emotion at every turn. Law deals with crimes of passion, property disputes, and divorces that involve fury, despair, and a...

Sovereign Virtue: The Theory and Practice of Equality.
June 22, 2001... SOVEREIGN VIRTUE: THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF EQUALITY. By Ronald Dworkin. (1) Harvard University Press. 2000. $35.00. In my home state of Ohio, as in many others, the highest court in the state is struggling with how to specify the...