Union and States’ Rights : A History and Interpretation of Interposition, Nullification, and Secession 150 Years After Sumter

The third book in the &LAW series addresses the perpetual issue of state sovereignty in the federal union-'states' rights.' From the 1770s, through the Confederate states' secession, and continuing until now, a central issue of governance is state power to object to, cancel, or be immune from federal law. The issue is fervently debated in the political arena by Tea Party efforts to limit federal intervention in education and health care; and the nullification movement efforts to prevent federal gun control and marijuana regulations. And it is a linchpin of the Supreme Court's ruling on the Voting Rights Act. This volume provides an intelligent voice in the debate about states' rights-interposition, nullification, secession, constitutional amendment-150 years after Fort Sumter.