The Rhode Island State Constitution


Book Description

Rhode Island has a long history of constitutional governance. Beginning in 1636, Rhode Island's constitution has been shaped by revolution, nation-building, tumult, and further changes wrought by everything from neo-liberalism to gay rights. The result has been a living document reflecting conflicting and changing values, making the Rhode Island constitution an essential resource for understanding the cultural history of this state. In The Rhode Island State Constitution Patrick T. Conley and Robert J. Flanders provide an outstanding constitutional and historical account of the state's governing charter. In addition to an overview of Rhode Island's constitutional history, it provides an in-depth, section-by-section analysis of the entire constitution, detailing the many significant changes that have been made since its initial drafting. This treatment, along with a table of cases, index, and bibliography provides an unsurpassed reference guide for students, scholars, and practitioners of Rhode Island's constitution. Previously published by Greenwood, this title has been brought back in to circulation by Oxford University Press with new verve. Re-printed with standardization of content organization in order to facilitate research across the series, this title, as with all titles in the series, is set to join the dynamic revision cycle of The Oxford Commentaries on the State Constitutions of the United States. The Oxford Commentaries on the State Constitutions of the United States is an important series that reflects a renewed international interest in constitutional history and provides expert insight into each of the 50 state constitutions. Each volume in this innovative series contains a historical overview of the state's constitutional development, a section-by-section analysis of its current constitution, and a comprehensive guide to further research. Under the expert editorship of Professor G. Alan Tarr, Director of the Center on State Constitutional Studies at Rutgers University, this series provides essential reference tools for understanding state constitutional law. Books in the series can be purchased individually or as part of a complete set, giving readers unmatched access to these important political documents.




Encyclopedia of Constitutional Amendments, Proposed Amendments, and Amending Issues, 1789–2015 [2 volumes]


Book Description

Now in its fourth edition and completely updated, this is the most comprehensive book on constitutional amendments and proposed amendments available. Although only 27 amendments have ever been added to the U.S. Constitution, the last one having been ratified in 1992, throughout American history, members of Congress have introduced more than 11,000 amendments, and countless individuals outside of Congress have advanced their own proposals to revise the Constitution—the wellspring of America's legal, political, and cultural foundations. At a time when calls for a new constitutional convention are on the rise, it is essential for students of political science and history as well as American citizens to understand proposed alternatives. This updated edition of the established standard for high school and college libraries as well as public and law libraries serves as the go-to reference for learning about existing constitutional amendments, proposed amendments, and the issues related to them. An alphabetically arranged two-volume set, it contains more than 500 entries that discuss amendments that have been proposed in Congress from 1789 to the present. It also discusses prominent proposals for extensive constitutional changes introduced outside Congress as well as discussions of major amending issues.




Encyclopedia of Constitutional Amendments, Proposed Amendments, and Amending Issues, 1789-2023 [2 volumes]


Book Description

Written by a leading scholar of the constitutional amending process, this two-volume encyclopedia, now in its fifth edition, is an indispensable resource for students, legal historians, and high school and college librarians. This authoritative reference resource provides a history and analysis of all 27 ratified amendments to the Constitution, as well as insights and information on thousands of other amendments that have been proposed but never ratified from America's birth until the present day. The set also includes a rich bibliography of informative books, articles, and other media related to constitutional amendments and the amending process.




The Federalist Papers


Book Description

Classic Books Library presents this brand new edition of “The Federalist Papers”, a collection of separate essays and articles compiled in 1788 by Alexander Hamilton. Following the United States Declaration of Independence in 1776, the governing doctrines and policies of the States lacked cohesion. “The Federalist”, as it was previously known, was constructed by American statesman Alexander Hamilton, and was intended to catalyse the ratification of the United States Constitution. Hamilton recruited fellow statesmen James Madison Jr., and John Jay to write papers for the compendium, and the three are known as some of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Alexander Hamilton (c. 1755–1804) was an American lawyer, journalist and highly influential government official. He also served as a Senior Officer in the Army between 1799-1800 and founded the Federalist Party, the system that governed the nation’s finances. His contributions to the Constitution and leadership made a significant and lasting impact on the early development of the nation of the United States.




Electoral College Reform


Book Description

Contents: (1) Intro.; (2) Competing Approaches: Direct Popular Election v. Electoral College Reform; (3) Direct Popular Election: Pro and Con; (4) Electoral College Reform: Pro and Con; (5) Electoral College Amendments Proposed in the 111th Congress; (6) Contemporary Activity in the States; (7) 2004: Colorado Amendment 36; (8) 2007-2008: The Presidential Reform Act (California Counts); (9) 2006-Present: National Popular Vote -- Direct Popular Election Through an Interstate Compact; Origins; The Plan; National Popular Vote, Inc.; Action in the State Legislatures; States That Have Approved NPV; National Popular Vote; (10) Prospects for Change -- An Analysis; (11) State Action -- A Viable Reform Alternative?; (12) Concluding Observations.




A More Perfect Union


Book Description

Reprint. Originally published : Washington, D.C. : National Archives Trust Fund Board, 1978.




Ballots and Bibles


Book Description

By the mid-nineteenth century, Providence, Rhode Island, an early industrial center, became a magnet for Catholic immigrants seeking jobs. The city created as a haven for Protestant dissenters was transformed by the arrival of Italian, Irish, and French-Canadian workers. By 1905, more than half of its population was Catholic—Rhode Island was the first state in the nation to have a Catholic majority. Civic leaders, for whom Protestantism was an essential component of American identity, systematically sought to exclude the city's Catholic immigrants from participation in public life, most flagrantly by restricting voting rights. Through her account of the newcomers' fight for political inclusion, Evelyn Savidge Sterne offers a fresh perspective on the nationwide struggle to define American identity at the turn of the twentieth century.In a departure from standard histories of immigrants and workers in the United States, Ballots and Bibles views religion as a critical tool for new Americans seeking to influence public affairs. In Providence, this book demonstrates, Catholics used their parishes as political organizing spaces. Here they learned to be speakers and leaders, eventually orchestrating a successful response to Rhode Island's Americanization campaigns and claiming full membership in the nation. The Catholic Church must, Sterne concludes, be considered as powerful an engine for ethnic working-class activism from the 1880s until the 1930s as the labor union or the political machine.




SECRETS and SCANDALS


Book Description

Between 1986 and 2006 Rhode Island ran a gauntlet of scandals that exposed corruption and aroused public rage. Protesters marched on the State House. Coalitions formed to fight for systemic changes. Under intense public pressure, lawmakers enacted historic laws and allowed voters to amend defects in the state's constitution. Since colonial times, the state legislature had wielded vast executive powers. Even judges remained vulnerable. No one could forget that on a single day in 1935 the General Assembly sacked the entire Supreme Court. Without constitutional checks and balances, citizens suffered under single party control. Republicans ruled during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries; Democrats held sway from the 1930s into the twenty-first century. In their eras of unchecked control, both parties became corrupt. SECRETS & SCANDALS tells the inside story of events that shook a culture of corruption and finally brought separation of powers in 2004. No single leader, no political party, no organization could have converted betrayals of public trust into historic reforms. But when citizen coalitions connected with dedicated public officials to address systemic failures, government changed. Three times--in 2002, 2008, and 2013--Chicago's Better Government Association scored state laws that promote integrity, accountability, and government transparency. Rhode Island ranked second twice and first in 2013--largely because of reforms reported in SECRETS & SCANDALS.