How to Save a Constitutional Democracy

Nonfiction, Reference & Language, Law, Constitutional, Social & Cultural Studies, Political Science, Government, Democracy
Cover of the book How to Save a Constitutional Democracy by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq, University of Chicago Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq ISBN: 9780226564418
Publisher: University of Chicago Press Publication: October 5, 2018
Imprint: University of Chicago Press Language: English
Author: Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
ISBN: 9780226564418
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Publication: October 5, 2018
Imprint: University of Chicago Press
Language: English

Democracies are in danger. Around the world, a rising wave of populist leaders threatens to erode the core structures of democratic self rule. In the United States, the election of Donald Trump marked a decisive turning point for many. What kind of president calls the news media the “enemy of the American people,” or sees a moral equivalence between violent neo-Nazi protesters in paramilitary formation and residents of a college town defending the racial and ethnic diversity of their homes? Yet, whatever our concerns about the current president, we can be assured that the Constitution offers safeguards to protect against lasting damage—or can we?

How to Save a Constitutional Democracy mounts an urgent argument that we can no longer afford to be complacent. Drawing on a rich array of other countries’ experiences with democratic backsliding, Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Z. Huq show how constitutional rules can either hinder or hasten the decline of democratic institutions. The checks and balances of the federal government, a robust civil society and media, and individual rights—such as those enshrined in the First Amendment—do not necessarily succeed as bulwarks against democratic decline. Rather, Ginsburg and Huq contend, the sobering reality for the United States is that, to a much greater extent than is commonly realized, the Constitution’s design makes democratic erosion more, not less, likely. Its structural rigidity has had the unforeseen consequence of empowering the Supreme Court to fill in some details—often with doctrines that ultimately facilitate rather than inhibit the infringement of rights. Even the bright spots in the Constitution—the First Amendment, for example—may have perverse consequences in the hands of a deft communicator, who can degrade the public sphere by wielding hateful language that would be banned in many other democracies. But we—and the rest of the world—can do better. The authors conclude by laying out practical steps for how laws and constitutional design can play a more positive role in managing the risk of democratic decline.
 

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Democracies are in danger. Around the world, a rising wave of populist leaders threatens to erode the core structures of democratic self rule. In the United States, the election of Donald Trump marked a decisive turning point for many. What kind of president calls the news media the “enemy of the American people,” or sees a moral equivalence between violent neo-Nazi protesters in paramilitary formation and residents of a college town defending the racial and ethnic diversity of their homes? Yet, whatever our concerns about the current president, we can be assured that the Constitution offers safeguards to protect against lasting damage—or can we?

How to Save a Constitutional Democracy mounts an urgent argument that we can no longer afford to be complacent. Drawing on a rich array of other countries’ experiences with democratic backsliding, Tom Ginsburg and Aziz Z. Huq show how constitutional rules can either hinder or hasten the decline of democratic institutions. The checks and balances of the federal government, a robust civil society and media, and individual rights—such as those enshrined in the First Amendment—do not necessarily succeed as bulwarks against democratic decline. Rather, Ginsburg and Huq contend, the sobering reality for the United States is that, to a much greater extent than is commonly realized, the Constitution’s design makes democratic erosion more, not less, likely. Its structural rigidity has had the unforeseen consequence of empowering the Supreme Court to fill in some details—often with doctrines that ultimately facilitate rather than inhibit the infringement of rights. Even the bright spots in the Constitution—the First Amendment, for example—may have perverse consequences in the hands of a deft communicator, who can degrade the public sphere by wielding hateful language that would be banned in many other democracies. But we—and the rest of the world—can do better. The authors conclude by laying out practical steps for how laws and constitutional design can play a more positive role in managing the risk of democratic decline.
 

More books from University of Chicago Press

Cover of the book Telling It Like It Wasn’t by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book The School and Society and The Child and the Curriculum by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book The Three and a Half Minute Transaction by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book The Nonsense of Kant and Lewis Carroll by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book On Hysteria by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book "The Voice of Egypt" by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Stormwater by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Sidewalk City by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Beheading the Saint by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book America's Working Man by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Tuhami by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Wicked Intelligence by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Flawed System/Flawed Self by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Terrestrial Lessons by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
Cover of the book Walter Benjamin's Grave by Tom Ginsburg, Aziz Z. Huq
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy