American Constitutionalism

The approach is excellent...Gillman, Graber, and Whittington Vol. II is indispensable to anyone wishing to teach the American Constitution's protection of rights and liberties from an historical perspective. The research is superb, the curating is outstanding, and the organization translates readily into a highly effective syllabus. As the title says, this is not just a study of American Constitutional law, it is a study of American constitutionalism; case opinions are supplemented with political debates, speeches, correspondence, and background information that puts our constitutional politics in historical context. The appearance of the first edition changed the way I teach the subject, and this new edition takes the authors' innovative approach even further. The book is a truly outstanding text that will inform and enrich both teaching and scholarship in the study of American constitutionalism." * Howard H. Schweber, Univeristy of Wisconsin *
This book fills the historical gap that is often less present in similar texts on the topic of Constitutional Law. I feel that the design of the text looks beyond the traditional focus solely on Supreme Court opinions generally present in texts for this course. The additional historical and contextual information is an asset for instructors developing Constitutional Law courses." * Michael Fix, Georgia State University *
[Before this title] I had yet to see a constitutional law textbook that clicked with me...For me, its primary strength is in the way it integrates law and politics. Too many constitutional law textbooks before this spent too little attention to the political factors that surround and shape constitutional law. It very self consciously treats both law and politics as significant dynamics and contributors to the evolution of constitutional law...Much of my graduate training and scholarship since emphasized the interrelationship between political and legal institutions, actors, and dynamics. Politics shapes law; law shapes politics. As part of this, I appreciate that the text emphasizes that constitutional and statutory law is usually the result of lengthy debates and that constitutional law happens in locations other than the Supreme Court." * Shauna Fisher, West Virginia University *