A More Perfect Constitution 23 Proposals to Revitalize Our Constitution and Make America a Fairer Country

by Sabato, Larry J.

• ISBN13: 9780802716217
• ISBN10: 0802716210
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2007-10-02
• Publisher: Walker Books

Summary

"No society can make a perpetual constitution, or even a perpetual law. The earth belongs to the living generation."Thomas Jefferson "A constitution intended to endure for years to come [is] consequently to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs."John Marshall "This book will ask readers to set aside their own political loyalties, to look past the current 'values' debates and hot-button issues, to consider this very real possibility: that the failure of the nation to update the Constitution and the structure of government it originally bequeathed to us is at the root of our current political dysfunction."Larry Sabato The political book of the year, from the acclaimed founder and director of the Center for Politics at theUniversityofVirginia. Larry Sabato has one of the most visionary and fertile political minds in America. Like so many, he is increasingly alarmed at the growing dysfunction and unfairness of our political system. To solve this, to restore the equity for ordinary citizens that is at the core of our democratic society, we must take a radical stepto revise the Constitution, the document that guides our political process, for until some of its outmoded provisions are reformed, we will only have more of the same. The original framers fully expected the Constitution to be regularly revised by succeeding generations to reflect the country's changing needs; yet, apart from the ten amendments in the Bill of Rights, it has only been amended 17 times in 220 years, and most of those amendments had minor ramifications. Today, partisan gridlock dominates Washington; 17 percent of voters elect a majority of senators; the presidency has assumed unprecedented and unintended powers; while politicians spend as much time campaigning for office as they do governing; and average Americans feel more and more disconnected from the political process so that half or more don't vote in many electionsall of which would have horrified Jefferson and Madison. A More Perfect Constitutionpresents twenty three creative and dynamic proposals to reinvigorate American governance at a time when such change is urgently needed. Combining idealism and pragmatism, and with full respect for the original document, Sabato's thought-provoking ideas range from the length of the president's term in office and the number and terms of Supreme Court justices to the structure of Congress, the vagaries of the antiquated Electoral College, and a compelling call for universal national serviceall laced through with the history behind each issue and their potential impact on the lives of ordinary people. Aware that such changes won't happen easily, Sabato urges us nonetheless to engage in the debate and discussion they will surely engender. As we head towards a presidential election year, no book is more relevant or significant than his. The founder and director of the renowned Center for Politics at the University of Virginia,Larry J. Sabatohas been called "the Dr. Phil of American politics." He has appeared on every national television and radio program, including60 Minutes, theToday Show,Hardball,The O'Reilly Factor, andNightline. A Rhodes scholar, he received his doctorate in politics from Oxford, and has been on the faculty of UVA since 1978. He is the author of countless articles and some twenty books, includingFeeding Frenzy: Attack Journalism & American Politics,The Rise of Political Consultants: New Ways of Winning Elections, and most recently

Author Biography

The founder and director of the renowned Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, Larry J. Sabato has been called “the Dr. Phil of American politics.” He has appeared on every national television and radio program, including 60 Minutes, the Today Show, Hardball, The O'Reilly Factor, and Nightline. A Rhodes scholar, he received his doctorate in politics from Oxford, and has been on the faculty of UVA since 1978. He is the author of countless articles and some twenty books, including Feeding Frenzy: Attack Journalism & American Politics, The Rise of Political Consultants: New Ways of Winning Elections, and most recently The Sixth Year Itch: The Rise and Fall of George W. Bush’s Presidency, and he coanchored the BBC’s coverage of the 2006 election. In 2002, the University of Virginia gave him its highest honor, the Thomas Jefferson Award, given annually to one person since 1955.

Table of Contents

Preamble	p. 1
Creating a Capital Congress	p. 19
Reforming the Senate	p. 23
Reforming the House	p. 32
Congressional Term Limits: Extreme or Mainstream?	p. 41
Balancing the Budget: Setting the Stage for a Great Convention Debate	p. 54
Continuity of Government: Preparing for the Unthinkable	p. 69
Perfecting the Presidency	p. 76
The Presidential Term of Choice	p. 80
The Six-Year Term	p. 84
The Alternative: A Presidential Confirmation Election	p. 87
A Lengthened House Term (and Changes in the Senate Term)	p. 93
War-Making Limits: Presidential Downsizing	p. 97
Item Veto	p. 101
Fairness for All: Making the Presidency Possible for Americans Who Are Not "Natural-Born"	p. 104
The New Courts: Supreme But Not Eternal	p. 108
The Error of Lifetime Tenure	p. 110
Fixed Terms	p. 115
Not-So-Early Retirement	p. 116
A Balanced Bench	p. 117
Power of the Purse	p. 118
Politics: America's Missing Constitutional Link	p. 121
Of Parties, Presidential Politics, and the Quadrennial Orgy	p. 123
The Regional Lottery Plan for the New Constitution	p. 131
The Electoral College: Mend It, Don't End It	p. 134
Adding Some Political Rules of the Game for the Twenty-first Century	p. 152
A Citizenship of Service: Asking What We Can Do for Our Country...and Ourselves	p. 154
An American History of Service: Military Calls and Civilian Supplements	p. 157
The Case for Universal National Service (UNS)	p. 166
Universal National Service and America's Future	p. 176
Vox Populi: What Do the People Think of Constitutional Change?	p. 179
The Caution Light Blinks Steadily	p. 181
Dissatisfaction with the Status Quo	p. 183
Look Who's Talking	p. 186
Rasmussen Poll on the Proposed New Constitution	p. 190
Calling the Twenty-First-Century Constitutional Convention	p. 198
The Founders' Daring-and Our Timidity	p. 199
The Legal Netherworld Surrounding a New Convention	p. 202
Setting the Ground Rules Prior to the Convention	p. 205
Calling the Convention	p. 211
After the Convention: Ratification and Its Aftermath	p. 216
Conclusion: Getting There from Here	p. 221
United States Constitution and Amendments	p. 233
Acknowledgments	p. 257
Notes	p. 259
Selected Bibliography	p. 323
Index	p. 331
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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