Living constitution, dying faith

By Bradley C. S. Watson

Subjects: Progressivism (United States politics), Constitutional law, Philosophy

Description: Examines how the “living” Constitution arose from social Darwinism and pragmatism in the late nineteenth century. Explains how and why contemporary jurisprudence is so alien to the constitutionalism of the American Founders. To understand why today’s courts rule the way they do, one must start with the view—rooted in progressivism—that we have a Constitution that must be interpreted with “historically situated,” continually evolving notions of the individual, the state, and society.