Alexander Hamilton
Was This the Biggest Political Flip-Flop Ever?
I don’t think anybody is surprised when politicians flip-flop. George H.W. Bush with his “no new taxes” pledge provides a great modern example. But Alexander Hamilton arguably gave us the most damaging, if not the biggest, flip-flop ever when he did a complete 180 on...
Can the Vice President Break a Tie on Appointments?
In the Boston Globe, Laurence Tribe (Harvard) makes an originalist case that the Vice President cannot break ties on appointments votes. It’s an interesting issue but I am not persuaded. He begins: While the vice president has the power to cast a tiebreaking...
The Constitutionality of a National Bank: Hamilton vs. Jefferson
The First Bank of the United States was chartered for a period of 20 years by Congress on Feb. 25, 1791. Alexander Hamilton championed the bank, but it wasn’t without its detractors. One of the most vocal opponents of the bank was Thomas Jefferson who argued...
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde: Which Hamilton Are You Talking About?
We often hear people referred to as “Hamiltonians.” But that term always makes me wonder, which Hamilton do you mean? I recently had the opportunity to speak to a class at the West Virginia University School of Law. The subject was the constitutionality of...