Since the early 1960s the Supreme Court and its congressional critics have been locked in a continuing dispute over the issues of school prayer, busing, and abortion. Although for years the Court's congressional foes have introduced legislation designed to curb the powers of the federal courts in these areas, they have until now failed to enact such proposals. It is likely that these legislative efforts and the present confrontation with the Court will continue. Edward Keynes and Randall Miller argue that Congress lacks the constitutional power to legislate away the powers of the federal courts and to prevent individuals from seeking redress for presumed infringements of their constitutional rights in these areas. They demonstrate that neither the framers nor ratifiers of the Constitution intended the Congress to exercise plenary power over the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. Throughout its history the Court has never conceded unlimited powers to Congress; and until the late 1950s Congress had not attempted to gerrymander the Court's jurisdiction in response to specific decisions. But the authors contend this is just what the sponsors of recent legislative attacks on the Court intend, and they see such efforts as threatening the Court's independence and authority as defined in the separation of powers clauses of the Constitution.

Annotated text examines the legitimacy of judicial review.

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.

Congress Versus the Supreme Court, 1957-1960 was first published in 1961. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. This is an account of the effort made in the last two sessions of Congress to curb the Supreme Court because of certain liberal decisions of the Court, and an analysis of the reasons for the congressional failure. Many times in history Congress has objected to Court decisions and has tried to retaliate against the Court. The most recent period of difficulty traces back to the Court's school segregation decisions in 1954, but not until the Court took a liberal line in certain national security cases in 1956 and 1957 was an organized effort made in Congress to attack it. Professor Pritchett analyzes the specific decisions which aroused congressional concern and reviews the methods by which their reversal was sought. The failure of this effort to curb the Court is important to an understanding of the role of the Supreme Court in the American governmental system. This book is an expansion of the Guy Stanton Ford lectures given by Mr. Pritchett at the University of Minnesota.

Congress Versus the Supreme Court, 19571960 was first published in 1961. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. This is an account of the effort made in the last two sessions of Congress to curb the Supreme Court because of certain liberal decisions of the Court, and an analysis of the reasons for the congressional failure. Many times in history Congress has objected to Court decisions and has tried to retaliate against the Court. The most recent period of difficulty traces back to the Court's school segregation decisions in 1954, but not until the Court took a liberal line in certain national security cases in 1956 and 1957 was an organized effort made in Congress to attack it. Professor Pritchett analyzes the specific decisions which aroused congressional concern and reviews the methods by which their reversal was sought. The failure of this effort to curb the Court is important to an understanding of the role of the Supreme Court in the American governmental system. This book is an expansion of the Guy Stanton Ford lectures given by Mr. Pritchett at the University of Minnesota.