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The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution: Why Economic Inequality Threatens Our Republic
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About The Crisis Of The Middle-Class Constitution: Why
Product Description In this original, provocative contribution to the debate over economic inequality, Ganesh Sitaraman argues that a strong and sizable middle class is a prerequisite for America’s constitutional system. For most of Western history, Sitaraman argues, constitutional thinkers assumed economic inequality was inevitable and inescapable—and they designed governments to prevent class divisions from spilling over into class warfare. The American Constitution is different. Compared to Europe and the ancient world, America was a society of almost unprecedented economic equality, and the founding generation saw this equality as essential for the preservation of America’s republic. Over the next two centuries, generations of Americans fought to sustain the economic preconditions for our constitutional system. But today, with economic and political inequality on the rise, Sitaraman says Americans face a choice: Will we accept rising economic inequality and risk oligarchy or will we rebuild the middle class and reclaim our republic? The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution is a tour de force of history, philosophy, law, and politics. It makes a compelling case that inequality is more than just a moral or economic problem; it threatens the very core of our constitutional system. Review “In his fine book, both history and a call to arms, Ganesh Sitaraman argues that the contemporary explosion of inequality will destroy the American Constitution. . . . He has done all of us a great service, taking an issue of overwhelming public importance, delving into its history, helping understand how our forebears handled it and building a platform to think about it today.” —Angus Deaton, The New York Times Book Review (cover review)“Ganesh Sitaraman is a bold and visionary thinker whose new book, The Crisis of the Middle Class Constitution, shows that the disappearing American dream is more than a policy problem—it is a constitutional crisis. In our age of growing inequality, the stakes couldn’t be higher. Every American needs to read this book.” —Senator Elizabeth Warren“Persuasive. . . . Sitaraman makes a convincing case that we all have a fundamental stake in a more equitable society, not just because it is more fair or more likely to promote happiness, but because the future of our democracy depends on it." —David Cole, New York Review of Books“The Crisis of the Middle-Class Constitution may well prove to be the most important political book of the year.” —The Huffington Post“In a powerful new book, the legal scholar Ganesh Sitaraman argues that America’s government will fall apart as inequality deepens.” —Rebecca Rosen, The Atlantic “Sitaraman’s valuable book invites a set of questions that it alone cannot resolve. But they are the right questions, and part of the proof is that they’re hard to answer.” —The Nation “In a wonderfully concise and well-documented chapter, ‘How Economic Inequality Threatens the Republic,’ [Sitaraman] explains the dynamics of rising inequality and its impact on the political system. . . . [P]athbreaking exploration. . . . The book succeeds in its central objective: presenting a strong case that economic inequality isn’t just a matter of fairness or economic efficiency; it’s about the survival of our constitutional order. Americans who value the republic can only hope that judges, legislators and we the people take heed.” —James Gray Pope, The Washington Post“Mr. Sitaraman is onto an important insight, or at least a pressing question. Evidence from around the world strongly suggests that liberal constitutions do not fare well in countries with oligarchic social structures. Today, America's middle class is indeed beleaguered. . . . [This] book provides a much-needed reminder: For all our legendary good luck, nothing ordains that all our constitutional stories will have a happy ending.” —The Wall Street Journal“Sitaraman provides us with a much-needed reminder of how economic inequalit
