Democracy and the Constitution.Democracy and the Constitution Walter Berns American Enterprise Institute The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) is a conservative think tank, founded in 1943. According to the institute its mission "to defend the principles and improve the institutions of American freedom and democratic capitalism — limited government, 1150--17th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036 0844742392 $20.00 www.aei.org Democracy and the Constitution is a compilation of essays by scholar and historian Walter Berns (recipient of the 2005 National Humanities Medal The National Humanities Medal honors individuals or groups whose work has deepened the nation’s understanding of the humanities, broadened citizens’ engagement with the humanities, or helped preserve and expand Americans’ access to important resources in the ) concerning such issues as natural law, civil rights, states' rights states' rights, in U.S. history, doctrine based on the Tenth Amendment to the Constitution, which states, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people. , multiculturalism, patriotism Patriotism See also Chauvinism, Loyalty. America, Captain comic-strip character known as the “protector of the American way.” [Comics: Horn, 155–156] American elm traditional symbol of American patriotism. , the First Amendment, the role of academic and religious institutions, and especially, a solid defense of the strengths of the American Constitution as a governing and socially binding document. Berns particularly notes that lawyers and judges Alexis de Tocqueville, 1835 Alexis de Tocqueville, a French political scientist, historian, and politician, is best known for Democracy in America (1835). A believer in democracy, he was concerned about the concentration of power in the hands of a centralized government. are crucial in shaping the living constitution, as any serious question of constitutional law is sure to be presented to the court system in due time. Examining the lessons of history as well as contemporary legal and governmental theory, Democracy and the Constitution is a vibrant contribution to political science shelves and especially recommended for college library collections. |
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