In this ambitious, densely written and thought provoking work, Thomas proposes a perspective on constitutional interpretation that is at once a normative theory of constitutional practice and a redescription of constitutional history informed by that practice.
Douglas C. Dow
Law and Politics Book Review
By departing from traditional perspectives on judicial review, Professor Thomas provides an unconventional, ... Read moreyet refreshing and historically grounded, view of how historical constitutional conflicts have fallen squarely within Madison's vision.
Harvard Law Review
Thomas's book paves an important new path for the rest of us in our study of the Constitution and its effect on politics. His account of Madison's principle of constitutional contestation might well be the best account that yet exists of the reigning principle of our founder's political thought.
Benjamin Kleinerman
Review of Politics
In The Madisonian Constitution, Thomas charts a philosophically grounded and historically informed course... showing that James Madison and most others responsible for framing the Constitution, as well as major statesmen who followed, had a more prudent approach in mind.
Stanley C. Brubaker
Law and Society Review
The Madisonian Constitution reminds readers of that moment when, as Justice Story said, the meaning of the fundamental law was something far more important than the mere lawyers' 'extraordinary gloss' it has become.
Gary L. McDowell
Journal of American History
Thomas's Madison points the way to salvation from forms of constitutionalism that either place inordinate power in a small body of elite judges and lawyers, or give up on constitutional government altogether.
Michael P. Zuckert
Claremont Review of Books
The Madisonian Constitution is a valuable addition to the growing body of literature that seeks to provide a holistic view of how constitutional meaning develops.
Gerard N. Magliocca
Law and History Review
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