A Principled Constitution?: Four Skeptical Views

Is the United States Constitution the embodiment of certain principles? The four authors of this book for a variety of reasons, and with somewhat different emphases, believe the answer is no. Those who authored the Constitution no doubt all believed in liberty, equality, and, with caveats, republican self-government values, or if you will, principles. But they had different conceptions of those principles and what those principles entailed for constituting a government. Although the Constitution they created reflected, in some sense, their principles, the Constitution itself was a specific list of do’s and don’ts that its creators hoped would gain the allegiance of the newly independent and sovereign states. And, for somewhat different reasons, the authors of this book believe that was a good thing.

Steven D. Smith is Warren Distinguished Professor of law at the University of San Diego.

Larry Alexander is Warren Distinguished Professor of law at the University of San Diego.

James Allan is Garrick Professor of law at the University of Queensland.

Maimon Schwarzschild is professor of law at the University of San Diego.