The Law of the Land : A Grand Tour of Our Constitutional Republic

From Kennebunkport to Kauai, from the Rio Grande to the Northern Rockies, ours is a vast republic. While we may be united under one Constitution, separate and distinct states remain, each with its own constitution and culture. Geographic idiosyncrasies add more than just local character. Regional understandings of law and justice have shaped and reshaped our nation throughout history. America's Constitution, our founding and unifying document, looks slightly different in California than it does in Kansas. In __The Law of the Land__, renowned legal scholar Akhil Reed Amar illustrates how geography, federalism, and regionalism have influenced some of the biggest questions in American constitutional law. Writing about Illinois, “the land of Lincoln," Amar shows how our sixteenth president's ideas about secession were influenced by his Midwestern upbringing and outlook. All of today's Supreme Court justices, Amar notes, learned their law in the Northeast, and New Yorkers... "From Illinois to Alabama, and from Florida to Utah, our laws and legal debates arise from distinctive local settings within our vast and varied nation. As the renowned scholar Akhil Amar explains, Abraham Lincoln's argument against the legality of succession can be traced to his Midwestern upbringing, just as a close look at the Florida legislature and state Supreme Court reveals the fundamental wrongness of the Bush v. Gore decision. Amar profiles Alabama's Hugo Black, the dominant constitutional jurist of the twentieth century, and California's Anthony Kennedy, the powerful swing justice on the current Court. He probes Brown v. Board of Education, and explores the divisiveness of the Second and Fourth Amendments. An expert guide to America's constitutional landscape, Amar sheds new light on American history and politics and shows how America's legal tradition unites a vast and disparate land."-- "In The Law of the Land, renowned legal scholar Akhil Reed Amar explores the most pressing questions in American jurisprudence through a close look at how our nation's geography has shaped its laws. Writing about Illinois, Amar discusses Lincoln's arguments against the legality of secession in the context of his upbringing on what was then the country's western frontier. Writing about New Jersey, he examines the career of Lord Camden, a British defender of the individual's rights against government intrusion, and the legacy of Camden's beliefs in that state's laws. Writing about Florida, Amar shows how a close look at the workings of the state legislature and state supreme court reveals the fundamental wrongness of the Bush v. Gore decision. His essay about gun-loving Utah, meanwhile, is a subtle examination of the second amendment that will infuriate both sides in the debate. Other states covered within include Iowa, Ohio, Massachusetts, Alabama, California, Kansas, and New York"-- From Kennebunkport to Kauai, from the Rio Grande to the Northern Rockies, ours is a vast republic. While we may be united under one Constitution, separate and distinct states remain, each with its own constitution and culture. Geographic idiosyncrasies add more than just local character. Regional understandings of law and justice have shaped and reshaped our nation throughout history. America's Constitution, our founding and unifying document, looks slightly different in California than it does in Kansas. In The Law of the Land , renowned legal scholar Akhil Reed Amar illustrates how geography, federalism, and regionalism have influenced some of the biggest questions in American constitutional law. Writing about Illinois, "the land of Lincoln," Amar shows how our sixteenth president's ideas about secession were influenced by his Midwestern upbringing and outlook. All of today's Supreme Court justices, Amar notes, learned their law in the Northeast, and New Yorkers of various sorts dominate the judiciary as never before. The curious Bush v. Gore decision, Amar insists, must be assessed with careful attention to Florida law and the Florida Constitution. The second amendment appears in a particularly interesting light, he argues, when viewed from the perspective of Rocky Mountain cowboys and cowgirls. Propelled by Amar's distinctively smart, lucid, and engaging prose, these essays allow general readers to see the historical roots of, and contemporary solutions to, many important constitutional questions. The Law of the Land illuminates our nation's history and politics, and shows how America's various local parts fit together to form a grand federal framework. "From Illinois to Alabama, and from Florida to Utah, our laws and legal debates arise from distinctive local settings within our vast and varied nation. As the renowned scholar Akhil Amar explains, Abraham Lincoln's argument against the legality of succession can be traced to his Midwestern upbringing, just as a close look at the Florida legislature and state Supreme Court reveals the fundamental wrongness of the Bush v. Gore decision. Amar profiles Alabama's Hugo Black, the dominant constitutional jurist of the twentieth century, and California's Anthony Kennedy, the powerful swing justice on the current Court. He probes Brown v. Board of Education, and explores the divisiveness of the Second and Fourth Amendments. An expert guide to America's constitutional landscape, Amar sheds new light on American history and politics and shows how America's legal tradition unites a vast and disparate land."-- Provided by publisher From Illinois to Alabama, and from Florida to Wyoming, our laws and legal debates arise from distinctive local settings within our vast and varied nation. As the renowned scholar Akhil Amar explains, Abraham Lincoln's argument against the legality of secession can be traced to his Midwestern upbringing, just as a close look at the Florida legislature and state Supreme Court reveals the fundamental wrongness of the Bush v. Gore decision. Amar profiles Alabama's Hugo Black, the dominant constitutional jurist of the twentieth century, and California's Anthony Kennedy, the powerful swing justice on the current Court. He probes Brown v. Board of Education, and explores the divisiveness of the Second and Fourth Amendments. An expert guide to America's constitutional landscape, Amar sheds new light on American history and politics and shows how America's legal tradition unites a vast and disparate land Preface Part I: Constitutional Interpreters 1. ILLINOIS: Abraham Lincoln and the American Union 2. ALABAMA: Hugo Black and the Hall of Fame 3. NEW YORK: Robert Jackson and the Judicialization of the Judiciary 4. CALIFORNIA: Anthony Kennedy and the Ideal of Equality Part II: Constitutional Cases 5. KANSAS: Living in the Shadow of Brown v. Board 6. IOWA: Rereading Tinker vs. Des Moines 7. FLORIDA: Getting to the Bottom of Bush V. Gore PART III: Constitutional Provisions and Principles 8. OHIO: A Buckeye-State View of Presidents Without Mandates 9. TEXAS: A Lone-Star View of Presidential Selection and Succession 10. WYOMING: A Rocky-Mountain View of the Second Amendment 11. MASSACHUSETTS: A Bay-State View of the Fourth Amendment 12. NEW JERSEY: Lord Camden Meets Federalism Conclusion Acknowledgments Appendix: The Constitution of the United States Notes Index US Constitutional Law,United States Constitution,2nd Amendment,4th Amendment