How Democratic is the American Constitution? Second Edition

A Washington Post Book World Best Seller“Robert A. Dahl . . . is about as covered in honors as a scholar can be. . . . He knows what he is talking about. And he thinks that the Constitution has something the matter with it.”—Hendrik Hertzberg, New Yorker“A devastating attack on the undemocratic character of the American Constitution.”—Gordon S. Wood, New York Review of BooksIn this provocative book, one of our most eminent political scientists poses the question, “Why should Americans uphold their constitution?” The vast majority of Americans venerate the Constitution and the democratic principles it embodies, but many also worry that the United States has fallen behind other nations on crucial issues, including economic equality, racial integration, and women’s rights. Robert Dahl explores this vital tension between the Americans’ belief in the legitimacy of their constitution and their belief in the principles of democracy.Dahl starts with the assumption that the legitimacy of the Am