Readings in American Government
Edition: 11
Copyright: 2023
Pages: 646
Edition: 11
Copyright: 2023
Pages: 646
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Readings in American Government provides a wide array of material on the fundamental themes of American political life. Teachers will enjoy having a single volume, which combines more than 100 readings from both primary and secondary sources. Students will benefit from the introductory essays at the beginning of each chapter, which analyze the readings and explain the major themes of the chapter. This volume encourages professors and students to engage with timeless questions and issues facing the American regime, including:
- The American regime’s fundamental political commitments
- The relationship between majority rule and the rights of minorities
- The tension between individualism and community
- Separation of powers and the role of political institutions
- Presidential leadership and presidential rhetoric
- The role of political parties and the potential for reforming them today
- Constitutional interpretation
- Economics and the appropriate extent of government involvement in the economy
- The purposes and principles of American foreign policy
- The maintenance of liberty and equality in the United States
Readings in American Government has been updated to address contemporary issues such as populism and the Trump Administration, modern political rhetoric, reforming Congress, and the “Green New Deal.”
I. THE FOUNDING AND THE PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT
1. The Declaration of Independence (1776) Thomas Jefferson
2. The Meaning of the Declaration of Independence (1857) Abraham Lincoln
3. Exchange on State Sovereignty and the Problem of Majority Rule (1858) Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln
4. The Revolution of Sober Expectations (1975) Martin Diamond
5. The Small Republic Argument (1787) Centinel
6. Selections from the Records of the Federal Convention of 1787
7. The Work of the Constitutional Convention (1787) James Madison
8. Federalist 10 (1787) James Madison
9. Federalist 51 (1788) James Madison
10. The Military in a Commercial Republic (1787) Alexander Hamilton
11. Equality and Commerce (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
12. On Citizenship (1824, 1816, 1814) Thomas Jefferson
13. Federalist 39 (1788) James Madison
14. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
15. The Purposes Served by Local Self-Government (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
16. Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital (1995) Robert D. Putnam
17. By the People: The Old Values of the New Citizenship (1994) William A. Schambra
18. Republican Friendship and the Common Good (2022) Jerome C. Foss
II. POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTIONS
19. On Great and Small Parties (1835) Alexis de Tocqueville
20. Political Parties and Constitutional Principles (2020) James W. Ceaser
21. The Electoral College (1788) Alexander Hamilton
22. The Electoral College and the American Idea of Democracy (1977) Martin Diamond
23. Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
24. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
25. The New Republican Party (1977) Ronald Reagan
26. Second Inaugural Address (2013) Barack Obama
27. Inaugural Address (2017) Donald Trump
28. Battle for the Soul of the Nation (2022) Joseph Biden
29. “Party Unity and Presidential Speech: How Reagan, Obama, and Biden Manage Party Conflict” (2022) Mark A. Scully
III. CONGRESS
30. On the Character of the Legislator (1778) Alexander Hamilton
31. On Congress (1788) Alexander Hamilton and James Madison
32. The Senate and Federalism (1833) Joseph Story
33. The Role of the Rich and the Poor in the Legislature (1787) John Adams
34. Anti-Federalists, Objections to the Constitutional Plan for Congress (1787-1788)
35. The Need for Cabinet Government in the United States (1879) Woodrow Wilson
36. The Palace Revolt: Majority Party Rule or Majority Rule? (1910)
37. The Rise of the Washington Establishment (1989) Morris P. Fiorina
38. Congress Is Not the Broken Branch (2022) William F. Connelly, Jr.
39. Deliberation Defended (1994) Joseph M. Bessette
40. U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton (1995)
41. McConnell and the Republicans Nuke the Filibuster (2017)
42. Congressional Crises: The Rhetoric of Reform (2019) Joseph F. Wysocki
IV. THE PRESIDENCY
43. On the Presidency (1788) Alexander Hamilton
44. The Rise of the Rhetorical Presidency (1981) James W. Ceaser, Glen E. Thurow, Jeffrey K. Tulis, Joseph M. Bessette
45. The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions (1838) Abraham Lincoln
46. United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corporation (1936)
47. The “Stewardship Theory” (1913) Theodore Roosevelt
48. Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers (1916) William Howard Taft
49. The Presidency, Political Pragmatism, and Constitutional Principle (2019) Kevin J. Burns
50. Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952)
51. Korematsu v. United States (1944)
52. On the Suspension of the Writ of Habeas Corpus (1863) Abraham Lincoln
53. Impeachment: A Legal or Political Process? (2022) Jordan T. Cash
54. Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln (1876) Frederick Douglass
V. THE JUDICIARY
55. The Role of the Supreme Court (1788) Alexander Hamilton
56. The Problem of Judicial Review (1787) Brutus
57. Against Judicial Review (1815) Thomas Jefferson
58. The Authority of the Supreme Court (1857) Abraham Lincoln
59. Marbury v. Madison (1803)
60. Federalist Constitutionalism and Judicial Independence (2013) Matthew S. Brogdon
61. Eakin v. Raub (1825)
62. Cooper v. Aaron (1958)
63. United States v. Nixon (1974)
64. Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (2022)
65. Constitutional Interpretation (1985) William J. Brennan, Jr.
66. Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee (1987) Robert H. Bork
67. Exchange on the Binding of Generations (1789–1790) Thomas Jefferson and James Madison
68. Federalist 49 (1788) James Madison
VI. POLITICS AND ECONOMICS
69. Capitalism and Freedom (1962) Milton Friedman
70. The New Goals of Politics (1932, 1935, 1941) Franklin Delano Roosevelt
71. The “Great Society” (1964) Lyndon B. Johnson
72. Address to the Nation on the Economy (1981) Ronald Reagan
73. Soft Despotism (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
74. Against Manufacturing (1787) Thomas Jefferson
75. Report on Manufactures (1791) Alexander Hamilton
76. Address on Free Trade (1988) Ronald Reagan
77. Remarks at the World Economic Forum (2020) Donald Trump
78. Kelo v. New London (2005)
79. National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012)
80. Regulation and Liberty (2013) Adam M. Carrington
VII. FOREIGN POLICY AND THE AMERICAN REGIME
81. Federalist 11 (1787) Alexander Hamilton
82. The Monroe Doctrine (1823) James Monroe
83. War Message (1917) Woodrow Wilson
84. The Principles and Purposes of American Foreign Policy (2019) Stephen P. Sims
85. Selections from Pacificus and Americanus (1793–1794) Alexander Hamilton
86. Selections from Helvidius (1793) James Madison
87. “The Bush Doctrine” (2002) George W. Bush
88. Speech to the United Nations (2018) Donald Trump
89. Press Conference on American Support for Ukraine (2022) Joseph Biden
90. Ukraine, U.S. Foreign Policy, and the Nature of War (2022) Eric Fleury 518 91. The Moral Basis of International Action (1961) Joseph Cropsey
VIII. LIBERTY AND EQUALITY
92. United States v. Stevens (2010)
93. Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith (1990)
94. Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014)
95. Roe v. Wade (1973)
96. Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey (1992)
97. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)
98. Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
99. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
100. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
101. Bolling v. Sharpe (1954)
102. Grutter v. Bollinger (2003)
103. Harrison Bergeron (1961) Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
104. The Natural Aristocracy (1813) Thomas Jefferson
105. Why So Many Ambitious Men and So Little Lofty Ambition Are to Be Found in the United States (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
APPENDIX The Constitution of the United States of America
Readings in American Government provides a wide array of material on the fundamental themes of American political life. Teachers will enjoy having a single volume, which combines more than 100 readings from both primary and secondary sources. Students will benefit from the introductory essays at the beginning of each chapter, which analyze the readings and explain the major themes of the chapter. This volume encourages professors and students to engage with timeless questions and issues facing the American regime, including:
- The American regime’s fundamental political commitments
- The relationship between majority rule and the rights of minorities
- The tension between individualism and community
- Separation of powers and the role of political institutions
- Presidential leadership and presidential rhetoric
- The role of political parties and the potential for reforming them today
- Constitutional interpretation
- Economics and the appropriate extent of government involvement in the economy
- The purposes and principles of American foreign policy
- The maintenance of liberty and equality in the United States
Readings in American Government has been updated to address contemporary issues such as populism and the Trump Administration, modern political rhetoric, reforming Congress, and the “Green New Deal.”
I. THE FOUNDING AND THE PRINCIPLES OF GOVERNMENT
1. The Declaration of Independence (1776) Thomas Jefferson
2. The Meaning of the Declaration of Independence (1857) Abraham Lincoln
3. Exchange on State Sovereignty and the Problem of Majority Rule (1858) Stephen A. Douglas and Abraham Lincoln
4. The Revolution of Sober Expectations (1975) Martin Diamond
5. The Small Republic Argument (1787) Centinel
6. Selections from the Records of the Federal Convention of 1787
7. The Work of the Constitutional Convention (1787) James Madison
8. Federalist 10 (1787) James Madison
9. Federalist 51 (1788) James Madison
10. The Military in a Commercial Republic (1787) Alexander Hamilton
11. Equality and Commerce (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
12. On Citizenship (1824, 1816, 1814) Thomas Jefferson
13. Federalist 39 (1788) James Madison
14. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
15. The Purposes Served by Local Self-Government (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
16. Bowling Alone: America’s Declining Social Capital (1995) Robert D. Putnam
17. By the People: The Old Values of the New Citizenship (1994) William A. Schambra
18. Republican Friendship and the Common Good (2022) Jerome C. Foss
II. POLITICAL PARTIES AND ELECTIONS
19. On Great and Small Parties (1835) Alexis de Tocqueville
20. Political Parties and Constitutional Principles (2020) James W. Ceaser
21. The Electoral College (1788) Alexander Hamilton
22. The Electoral College and the American Idea of Democracy (1977) Martin Diamond
23. Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
24. Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
25. The New Republican Party (1977) Ronald Reagan
26. Second Inaugural Address (2013) Barack Obama
27. Inaugural Address (2017) Donald Trump
28. Battle for the Soul of the Nation (2022) Joseph Biden
29. “Party Unity and Presidential Speech: How Reagan, Obama, and Biden Manage Party Conflict” (2022) Mark A. Scully
III. CONGRESS
30. On the Character of the Legislator (1778) Alexander Hamilton
31. On Congress (1788) Alexander Hamilton and James Madison
32. The Senate and Federalism (1833) Joseph Story
33. The Role of the Rich and the Poor in the Legislature (1787) John Adams
34. Anti-Federalists, Objections to the Constitutional Plan for Congress (1787-1788)
35. The Need for Cabinet Government in the United States (1879) Woodrow Wilson
36. The Palace Revolt: Majority Party Rule or Majority Rule? (1910)
37. The Rise of the Washington Establishment (1989) Morris P. Fiorina
38. Congress Is Not the Broken Branch (2022) William F. Connelly, Jr.
39. Deliberation Defended (1994) Joseph M. Bessette
40. U.S. Term Limits, Inc. v. Thornton (1995)
41. McConnell and the Republicans Nuke the Filibuster (2017)
42. Congressional Crises: The Rhetoric of Reform (2019) Joseph F. Wysocki
IV. THE PRESIDENCY
43. On the Presidency (1788) Alexander Hamilton
44. The Rise of the Rhetorical Presidency (1981) James W. Ceaser, Glen E. Thurow, Jeffrey K. Tulis, Joseph M. Bessette
45. The Perpetuation of Our Political Institutions (1838) Abraham Lincoln
46. United States v. Curtiss-Wright Export Corporation (1936)
47. The “Stewardship Theory” (1913) Theodore Roosevelt
48. Our Chief Magistrate and His Powers (1916) William Howard Taft
49. The Presidency, Political Pragmatism, and Constitutional Principle (2019) Kevin J. Burns
50. Youngstown Sheet and Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952)
51. Korematsu v. United States (1944)
52. On the Suspension of the Writ of Habeas Corpus (1863) Abraham Lincoln
53. Impeachment: A Legal or Political Process? (2022) Jordan T. Cash
54. Oration in Memory of Abraham Lincoln (1876) Frederick Douglass
V. THE JUDICIARY
55. The Role of the Supreme Court (1788) Alexander Hamilton
56. The Problem of Judicial Review (1787) Brutus
57. Against Judicial Review (1815) Thomas Jefferson
58. The Authority of the Supreme Court (1857) Abraham Lincoln
59. Marbury v. Madison (1803)
60. Federalist Constitutionalism and Judicial Independence (2013) Matthew S. Brogdon
61. Eakin v. Raub (1825)
62. Cooper v. Aaron (1958)
63. United States v. Nixon (1974)
64. Kennedy v. Bremerton School District (2022)
65. Constitutional Interpretation (1985) William J. Brennan, Jr.
66. Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee (1987) Robert H. Bork
67. Exchange on the Binding of Generations (1789–1790) Thomas Jefferson and James Madison
68. Federalist 49 (1788) James Madison
VI. POLITICS AND ECONOMICS
69. Capitalism and Freedom (1962) Milton Friedman
70. The New Goals of Politics (1932, 1935, 1941) Franklin Delano Roosevelt
71. The “Great Society” (1964) Lyndon B. Johnson
72. Address to the Nation on the Economy (1981) Ronald Reagan
73. Soft Despotism (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
74. Against Manufacturing (1787) Thomas Jefferson
75. Report on Manufactures (1791) Alexander Hamilton
76. Address on Free Trade (1988) Ronald Reagan
77. Remarks at the World Economic Forum (2020) Donald Trump
78. Kelo v. New London (2005)
79. National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius (2012)
80. Regulation and Liberty (2013) Adam M. Carrington
VII. FOREIGN POLICY AND THE AMERICAN REGIME
81. Federalist 11 (1787) Alexander Hamilton
82. The Monroe Doctrine (1823) James Monroe
83. War Message (1917) Woodrow Wilson
84. The Principles and Purposes of American Foreign Policy (2019) Stephen P. Sims
85. Selections from Pacificus and Americanus (1793–1794) Alexander Hamilton
86. Selections from Helvidius (1793) James Madison
87. “The Bush Doctrine” (2002) George W. Bush
88. Speech to the United Nations (2018) Donald Trump
89. Press Conference on American Support for Ukraine (2022) Joseph Biden
90. Ukraine, U.S. Foreign Policy, and the Nature of War (2022) Eric Fleury 518 91. The Moral Basis of International Action (1961) Joseph Cropsey
VIII. LIBERTY AND EQUALITY
92. United States v. Stevens (2010)
93. Employment Division, Department of Human Resources of Oregon v. Smith (1990)
94. Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014)
95. Roe v. Wade (1973)
96. Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey (1992)
97. Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022)
98. Obergefell v. Hodges (2015)
99. Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
100. Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
101. Bolling v. Sharpe (1954)
102. Grutter v. Bollinger (2003)
103. Harrison Bergeron (1961) Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
104. The Natural Aristocracy (1813) Thomas Jefferson
105. Why So Many Ambitious Men and So Little Lofty Ambition Are to Be Found in the United States (1840) Alexis de Tocqueville
APPENDIX The Constitution of the United States of America