The nation’s leading libertarian legal scholar tells the riveting story of the long struggle between two fundamentally opposing constitutional traditions and explains that beneath every passionate debate between conservatives and liberals lies a deep disagreement about our founding document.
Americans today are deeply divided—politically, ideologically, and culturally. Some of us live in blue states and watch CNN; others live in red states and watch Fox News. Some Americans want more government, others less. We engage in passionate debate over issues like gun control, health care, same-sex marriage, immigration, and the war on terrorism. But above all, says renowned legal scholar Randy E. Barnett, we are in fundamental disagreement about the Constitution.
From the early days of the American republic, the nature of government “of the people, by the people, for the people” has been disputed. This is because there are not one but two very different notions of “We the People” and popular sovereignty, which yield competing schools of constitutional thought. The democrats view We the People collectively and think popular sovereignty resides in the people as a group. They view the Constitution as a living document and contend that today’s majority should not be governed by the dead hand of past majorities.
The republicans view We the People as a collection of individuals. Their vision of government is that it should not reflect the will of the majority—but rather secure the preexisting rights of each and every person to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
This fundamental disagreement lies at the heart of our current national divide. In Our Republican Constitution, Barnett tells the fascinating story of how this conflict arose shortly after the Revolution, leading to the adoption of a new and innovative republican constitution; and how the struggle and eventual victory over slavery led to its improvement by a newly formed Republican Party. Yet soon after, progressive academics and activists urged the courts to remake it into a democratic constitution by ignoring key passages of its text. And eventually the courts complied.
Luckily, this debate is far from over. Drawing from his deep knowledge of constitutional law and history—as well as his experience litigating on behalf of medical marijuana and against Obamacare—Barnett explains why We the People would benefit greatly from the renewal of our Republican Constitution, and how this can be accomplished in the courts and political arena.
Advance Praise For Our Republican Constitution
“Georgetown law professor Randy Barnett is a rarity in academia. He is not only one of the most important constitutional scholars of our time, but a brilliant advocate for the restoration of our republic by embracing the Constitution and defending individual sovereignty. This is a very important book for constitutional conservatives and all Americans who love liberty and country.”—Mark R. Levin, lawyer, radio host, and author of Plunder and Deceit and The Liberty Amendments
“You don’t have to be in agreement with Randy Barnett to respect his scholarship, enjoy his writing, and learn from his arguments. But—trigger warning!—after reading this book, I predict you’ll find yourself more persuaded than you expected to be of the urgent case for reclaiming our Republican Constitution.”—William Kristol, editor of The Weekly Standard
“Randy Barnett is one of the country’s most important and creative constitutional thinkers. In Our Republican Constitution, he revives and restates the natural rights tradition in American constitutional thought for our time, explaining why our system of government is based on the primacy of rights and respect for the individual sovereignty of each and every one of us.”—Jack M. Balkin, Yale Law School
“Randy Barnett has given us the book that will help every American develop a greater understanding of the Constitution. But Barnett does so much more than help us recall our constitutional heritage and the power of the courts to protect the rights of the people; he also points to a path forward for constitutional conservatives. This is essential reading for anyone interested in the future of our Constitution, from one of the most insightful constitutional scholars and political philosophers of his generation, and one of the leaders in our shared effort to restore the Constitution’s commitment to individual liberty.”—MIKE LEE, U.S. SENATOR FOR UTAH
Randy E. Barnett is the author of eleven books, including Restoring the Lost Constitution and The Structure of Liberty. He is the Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Legal Theory at the Georgetown University Law Center, where he teaches constitutional law and contracts, and is director of the Georgetown Center for the Constitution. In 2012 he represented the National Federation of Independent Business in its constitutional challenge to Obamacare. A recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in Constitutional Studies and the Bradley Prize, he lives in Washington, D.C.
Randy E. Barnett is author of thirteen books, including his memoir, A Life for Liberty: The Making of an American Originalist. He is the Patrick Hotung Professor of Constitutional Law at the Georgetown University Law Center, where he is faculty director of the Georgetown Center for the Constitution. In 2012 he represented the National Federation of Independent Business in its challenge to Obamacare. A recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship in Constitutional Studies and the Bradley Prize, he divides his time between Central Virginia and Sarasota, Florida. He is finishing a book on his time as a felony prosecutor in Chicago.
