Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United
Corruption in America: From Benjamin Franklin's Snuff Box to Citizens United
Teachout, Zephyr
product information
Condition: New, UPC: 9780674659988, Publication Date: Sun, May 1, 2016, Type: Paperback ,
join & start selling
description
4

When Louis XVI presented Benjamin Franklin with a snuff box encrusted with diamonds and inset with the King's portrait, the gift troubled Americans: it threatened to "corrupt" Franklin by clouding his judgment or altering his attitude toward the French in subtle psychological ways. This broad understanding of political corruption--rooted in ideals of civic virtue--was a driving force at the Constitutional Convention.

For two centuries the framers' ideas about corruption flourished in the courts, even in the absence of clear rules governing voters, civil officers, and elected officials. Should a law that was passed by a state legislature be overturned because half of its members were bribed? What kinds of lobbying activity were corrupt, and what kinds were legal? When does an implicit promise count as bribery? In the 1970s the U.S. Supreme Court began to narrow the definition of corruption, and the meaning has since changed dramatically. No case makes that clearer than Citizens United.

In 2010, one of the most consequential Court decisions in American political history gave wealthy corporations the right to spend unlimited money to influence elections. Justice Anthony Kennedy's majority opinion treated corruption as nothing more than explicit bribery, a narrow conception later echoed by Chief Justice Roberts in deciding McCutcheon v. FEC in 2014. With unlimited spending transforming American politics for the worse, warns Zephyr Teachout, Citizens United and McCutcheon were not just bad law but bad history. If the American experiment in self-government is to have a future, then we must revive the traditional meaning of corruption and embrace an old ideal.

reviews

Be the first to write a review

member goods

No member items were found under this heading.

notems store

My Magical Three That Sets ...

by Khanzadeh, Arezoo

Paperback /Paperback

$8.21

Sleepover at the Museum

by Lefrak, Karen

Paperback /Paperback

$5.99

The Heart has Many Rooms

by Wood, Jeanie

Paperback /Paperback

$11.99

Dead Dogs

by Fosse, Jon

Paperback /Paperback

$14.83

listens & views

ON GROOVE

by SCOTT,JACK

COMPACT DISC

out of stock

$16.99

1937-41

by BERRY,CHUCK

COMPACT DISC

out of stock

$20.99

FALLS OF BRAVE (BONUS TRACK) ...

by IRON MASK

COMPACT DISC

out of stock

$22.99

IMMORTAL CHANGES

by BABICZ,ROBERT

COMPACT DISC

out of stock

$16.99

Return Policy

All sales are final

Shipping

No special shipping considerations available.
Shipping fees determined at checkout.
promoting relevance through notable postings ]
share it, buy it, sell it ]

A notem is a post that highlights an experience, idea, topic of interest, an event ... whatever a member believes worthy of discussion. Each notem becomes a pathway by which to make meaningful connections.

notems is a free, global social network that rewards members by the number and quality of notems they post.

notemote® © . Privacy Policy. Developed by Hartmann Software Group