Conservative Minds

Barnett believes that American citizens of today have not truly consented to be governed. As a result, the Constitution must provide sufficient procedural assurances to protect rights. Indeed, the protection of rights is the only function that justifies restricting personal freedom. He also argues that erroneous Supreme Court precedent has granted plenary power to Congress to regulate in contradiction to the plain reading of the Constitution. The upshot is a weakened state and local governing structure, whereby the people must look to Washington, D.C. for all laws and regulations.

Turner argues that the frontier area of free land and the advance of American settlement westward, explain American democracy. Up to the late 1800s, American social development had been continually beginning over again on the frontier. This perennial rebirth, this fluidity of American life, this expansion westward with its new opportunities furnish the forces dominating American character. He says the true point of view in the history of this nation is not the Atlantic coast, it is the Great West.

Scalia believes the plain text of the law governs and not the intent of the lawmaker or the predilections of the judge. A legal text should be interpreted reasonably to contain all that it fairly meant at the time of drafting. Words have a limited range of meaning, and no meaning that goes beyond that range is permissible. The judge's role is not to impose her own prescriptions for social justice. The 'Living Constitution' serves as a license to make policy from the bench. Scalia believes we need limiting principles to prevent judges from unrestrained judicial lawmaking.

For Machiavelli, the end of politics is the maximization of power. A prince achieves greatness through calculation and maneuver. The wise prince knows how to use and constrain human nature to manipulate his subjects.