Constitutional Politics in the States - (Contributions in Legal Studies) by G Alan Tarr (Hardcover)

About the Book

The reliance on state declarations of rights to expand rights protections during the last two decades has highlighted the political importance of state constitutions. Yet, throughout American history up to the present day, state constitutions have been the battleground for fundamental political conflicts. This edited volume analyzes the efforts of various groups to achieve their ends via constitutional revision and constitutional amendments, examines the responses to controversial state constitutional rulings, and assesses the consequences of constitutional politics on substantive state policy.

Book Synopsis

The reliance on state declarations of rights to expand rights protections during the last two decades has highlighted the political importance of state constitutions. Yet, throughout American history up to the present day, state constitutions have been the battleground for fundamental political conflicts. This edited volume analyzes the efforts of various groups to achieve their ends via constitutional revision and constitutional amendments, examines the responses to controversial state constitutional rulings, and assesses the consequences of constitutional politics on substantive state policy.

Review Quotes

?This book is a welcome addition to a thin literature.?-American Political Science Review

"This book is a welcome addition to a thin literature."-American Political Science Review

About the Author

G. ALAN TARR is Director of the Council for State Constitutional Studies at Rutgers University-Camden. He is author and coauthor of several books in judicial politics, including rican Constitutional Law, 4th Edition95), and te Supreme Courts in State and Nation88). He also serves as series editor on Reference Guides to the State Constitutions in the United States, published by Greenwood Press.