Constitutional myths
Subtitle: what we get wrong and how to get it right
By: Ray Raphael
Publisher: New Press; Distributed by Perseus Distribution
Published: 2013
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 316
ISBN-13: 9781595588326
Subjects: Constitutional history; History
Description: "Americans of late have taken to waving the Constitution in the air and proclaiming, 'The founders were on MY side! See, it's all right here!' But these phantom constitutions bear little relation to the historical one. By entering the world of the Constitution's framers, and experiencing it one day after the next as they did, Ray Raphael helps us understand how and why they created the document they did. Casting aside preconceptions and commonly held beliefs, he asks provocative questions that get to the heart of the document and its purposes: Was the aim of the Constitution really to limit government? Why didn't the framers include a Bill of Rights? Did they hate taxes? Was James Madison actually the 'Father of the Constitution,' as proclaimed in our textbooks? Can we find the true meaning of the Constitution by reading The Federalist Papers or by revealing the framers' 'original intent'? The answers to these questions are bound to surprise and enlighten. Before we can consider what the framers would do if they were alive today, we first need to see what they did during their own time, not in our terms, but theirs. Only then can we begin to resolve the sweeping question that affects us all: what does the Constitution, written at a different time, mean for us today? With this meticulously researched historical tour de force, Raphael sets the record straight--and sounds a vital call for a reasoned and evidence-driven debate about our founding document"--Provided by publisher.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-301) and index.
Table of contents: title: Preface. The historical constitution; title: A revolution in favor of government; title: Taxes; title: Politics; title: Principles; title: The father; title: The Federalist papers; title: "Bill of Rights"; title: Originalism; title: Document A. Articles of Confederation (submitted to the states November 15, 1777; ratified March 1, 1781); title: Document B. Washington's "legacy" letter to the states (June 8, 1783); title: Document C. Virginia plan (May 29, 1787); title: Document D. Committee of detail draft (August 6, 1787); title: Document E. Original United States Constitution (submitted by the Federal Convention September 17, 1787; ratified June 21, 1788); title: Document F. Madison's draft amendments (June 8, 1789); title: Document G. Initial set of constitutional amendments (twelve amendments submitted by Congress September 25, 1789; ten ratified December 15, 1791); title: Document H. Constitutional Amendments 11-27.