The Constitution in Exile: How the Federal Government Has Seized Power by Rewriting the Supreme Law of the Land

by Andrew P. Napolitano

Book Overview

What ever happened to our inalienable rights? ? The Constitution was once the bedrock of our country, an unpretentious parchment that boldly established the God-given rights and freedoms of America. Today that parchment has been shred to ribbons, explains Fox News senior judicial analyst Judge Andrew P. Napolitano, as the federal government trounces state and individual rights and expands its reach far beyond what the Framers intended. ? An important...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1595550305
• ISBN13: 9781595550309
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Nelson Current
• Length: 390 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 6.3" x 9.7"

Customer Reviews

Interesting history...

This was an interesting read. Napolitano is a Fox News Contributor who is an advocate of interpreting via natural law and reading the Constitution literally for it's intended meaning. As a result, the Fox News bashers will tend to ignore the book but it's worthy of their attention too because the leftwing liberal idea of reinterpeting the Constitution for today is what lead to legislation like the Patriot Act. In an unbiased way (politically), his criticisms of the current administration are well-balanced with a good explanation and examples of abuse. I've traditionally been a supporter of the Republicans and the Patriot act but the Judge's book have made me rethink the Patriot Act. I was also surprised at how far back in time some of the interpretation contraversies go, some dating back to Hamilton and Jefferson themselves.

Can we turn this enormous ship around and get it sailing in the right direction?

Judge Andrew Napolitano cares about the US Constitution. A lot. And he is concerned that both individual and state rights which have been eroded already, and are being abridged more, will not come back. This concern comes through loud and clear in each and every chapter. To Judge Napolitano, the US Constitution is not a "living" thing; rather, it is a document which is unassailable and incontrovertible in its protection of basic human rights, rights which are immutable and which do not change from day to day nor from Century to Century. Napolitano begins the book with a primer on the Constitution and the events surrounding its drafting. And early on, we see that the Founding Fathers were very cognizant of the threats faced by the union, yet they did not enact laws which went against the Natural Rights of man. Often in difficult or scary times it can be all too easy to enact laws which seemingly protect us, but which do so at the expense of our fundamental rights (and State rights) put forth in the Constitution....and some people take advantage of this to the people's detriment. This book will enlighten most people I think. I follow politics quite closely, and yet was unaware of many of the rights which were slowly eroding from right under our feet, (even though I knew there were many!)....I just was not aware of the scope and size. I was not even aware Lincoln suspended habeas corpus; I was always taught what a great President he was as he was behind the freeing of the slaves with the Emancipation Proclamation! Yet in a direct quote of Lincoln, he stated that he would have done **anything** to protect the union, if it meant freeing all of the slaves or even if it meant freeing none! I was also unaware of how much Lincoln had affected the slow dissipation of states rights, rights clearly enumerated in the 10th amendment. For all intents and purposes, Lincoln ignored the 10th Amendment, not to mention the 4th and several others. And throughout the book, you can clearly see how other Presidents, Justices, and Congresspeople make the same unforgivable error throughout the years, though perhaps not quite to the extent Lincoln had. It should also be noted that Judge Napolitano in very fair in his criticisms. He sides with George Bush on many issues as a Fox News Judicial Analyst, but in The Constitution in Exile, he is unrelenting in his criticism of the current Administration and the Congresspeople who go along with such things as the current day PATRIOT Act. "National Security Letters" sound almost Orwellian and clearly go against the intent of the Founding Fathers, especially if, as Napolitano states, judges are on standby 24/7 to sign warrants for searches or arrests. Instead, the "National Security Letters" allow the federal agents to write them on their own! What is the point of having warrants issued if the people who are supposed to present **some** proof of guilt are able to fill them out on their own, without any

How did we get here - to this federal Leviathan?!!!

Have you ever wondered: How or why it is a "federal issue" how big your toilet bowl is, or how fast you drive your car? Why does the "federal" Congress decide what your own state's drinking age is? Why does Congress purport to regulate whether Major League Baseball allows steroids or not? Why should the "federal" government bail out bankrupt savings and loans when other bankrupt business must just suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune? How are any of these "federal issues"? Moreover, why does the "federal" government monitor what you read at your local library, whether you can grow medicinal marijuana at home, the amount of alcohol you can have before driving, what you send in the mail, and what "precise" test scores your child's school must receive so it won't be "left behind" under federal guidelines for neighborhood school education? Wait a minute -- did I just say "federal" guidelines for neighborhood school education? -- um, yes, we are there, people. Although neighborhood schools are the ultimate sacred cow, the greatest "local control" voter issue, we are already at the point where the feds regulate and monitor the performance of your neighborhood public school, thanks to the Hall Monitor in Chief's "No School Left Behind Act" (the greatest example to date of a federal mandate/no pay act). How sad is that? We are also "there" at many other horribly excessive instances of federal government overreaching and abuse which Judge Napolitano explores in his powerful new book, "The Constitution in Exile." If you have any inkling of state's rights or local control left in your heart (or mind), you will join me (and Judge Napolitano) in asking, Why should the federal government be able to regulate what I grow in my backyard? Well, they sure can, as this book will show you. Why is it a federal concern how products are manufactured at my local furniture shop? You better believe it is! How can the feds seize my bank records, my library reading history, my mail and other personal records -- all without a warrant as I thought was required by the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution? Well, they can, my dear, and you need look no further than the Patriot Act and the Bush Administration's abuses of power to see it in practice. The federal government has no respect for the boundaries on its power that were set by the Constitution - and it hasn't for a very, very, long, long time. The Bush Administration is only the latest extreme example of the contempt that those in power have for the very Source of their power, the Constitution, but it has long been this way, as the feds have gathered, expanded and increased federal power, from the time of Abe Lincoln to FDR to LBJ to the worst offender of all, GWB. If you are fed up with the federal government Leviathan and want to re-affirm the limits placed on the federal government's power by the Constitution, you must read this book. It will educate you and remind you of the proper role o

Fascinating and insightful, a worthy and important read

Who would have thought the law could be so interesting... Judge Napolitano is not only a brilliant legal scholar, but an engaging author as well. This thought provoking book is very easy to read and understand. It is also quite insightful, delving deeply into topics most of us have not thought much about until now. For example, the Federal government was created by the states not the other way around. The constitution, therefore, was written in large part to safeguard the rights of those states. The uniform drinking age specifically supersedes rights that the constitution left to the states. The same thing goes for medical standards, education, and a whole lot more, not necessarily due to any malicious or nefarious intent but simply because it has become accepted practice. Under the vision of our Founding Fathers, the Federal government was never supposed to have the sweeping authority it has acquired. Napolitano's fascinating book highlights these important issues and gives readers a lot to think about and perhaps act on in the next election... A thought provoking, interesting, and important read. Highly recommended!

The Overthrow of the US Constitution, America in Crisis

Andrew P. Napolitano brings a gripping case to the forefront of the American people in his stellar book "The Constitution in Exile." Startling evidence about how Congress in nearly every Presidential term has used political might to enhance their own power, thereby overthrowing the one pillar of freedom the American people have, and this is our Constitution. Napolitano attacks the Patriot Act, unleashes calculative volleying for control OVER the people, and exposes too many facts from all sides of the political arena for this book to be ignored. It's scary to watch our freedom slowly sliding away. What's even scarier is that the facts in this book are too true for comfort. This book should be read by every person who holds a position in government, as well as every student majoring in political science. The only chance the Constitution has for standing is when the American people unite to take a stand.