Commentary

• An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States

  - Beard, Charles A. An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States. New York: The Macmillan company, 1935.

• The Liberal Tradition in America; An Interpretation of American Political Thought Since the Revolution

  - Hartz, Louis. The Liberal Tradition in America; An Interpretation of American Political Thought Since the Revolution. New York: Harcourt, Brace, 1955.

• The Philosophy of the American Constitution: A Reinterpretation of the Intentions of the Founding Fathers

  - Eidelberg, Paul. The Philosophy of the American Constitution: A Reinterpretation of the Intentions of the Founding Fathers. New York: Free Press, 1968.

• A Discourse on Statesmanship: The Design and Transformation of the American Polity

  - Eidelberg, Paul. A Discourse on Statesmanship: The Design and Transformation of the American Polity. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1974.

• What the Anti-Federalists Were For

  - Storing, Herbert. What the Anti-Federalist Were For, ed. Murray Dry. Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1981.
  The Anti-Federalists, in Herbert J. Storing’s view, are somewhat paradoxically entitled to be counted among the Founding Fathers and to share in the honor and study devoted to the founding. “If the foundations of the American polity was laid by… More

• The Political Theory of the Federalist

  - Epstein, David F., The Political Theory of the Federalist. Chicago: U of Chicago Press, 1984.
  In The Political Theory of  “The Federalist,” David F. Epstein offers a guide to the fundamental principles of American government as they were understood by the framers of the Constitution. Epstein here demonstrates the remarkable depth and clarity… More

• The Moral Foundations of the American Republic

  - Horwitz, Robert H. The Moral Foundations of the American Republic. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1986.
  A collection of stimulating and groundbreaking essays from the following contributors: Joseph Cropsey * Benjamin R. Barber * Richard Hofstadter * Martin Diamond * Gordon S. Wood * Robert A. Goldwin * Wilson Carey McWilliams * Robert A. Dahl * James Ceaser *… More

• The Thinking Revolutionary: Principle and Practice in the New Republic

  - Lerner, Ralph. The Thinking Revolutionary: Principle and Practice in the New Republic. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1987.

• The Spirit of Modern Republicanism: The Moral Vision of the American Founders and the Philosophy of Locke

  - Pangle, Thomas L. The Spirit of Modern Republicanism: The Moral Vision of the American Founders and the Philosophy of Locke. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1988.

• The American founding: essays on the formation of the Constitution

  - Barlow, J. Jackson, Leonard Williams Levy, and Ken Masugi. The American founding: essays on the formation of the Constitution. Vol. 205. Greenwood Pub Group, 1988.

• Intellectual Background to the American Founding, The

  - Lutz, Donald S. “Intellectual Background to the American Founding, The.” Texas Tech Law Review 21 (1990): 2327.

• The American Polity: Essays on the Theory and Practice of Constitutional Government

  - Erler, Edward J. The American Polity: Essays on the Theory and Practice of Constitutional Government. New York: C. Russak, 1991.

• Taming the Prince: The Ambivalence of Modern Executive Power

  - Mansfield, Harvey Claflin. Taming the Prince: The Ambivalence of Modern Executive Power. New York: Free Press, 1989
  This survey of Western political thought ranges from Aristotle to “The Federalist Papers”, showing how the doctrine of executive power arose and how it has developed to the present day. Although there were various “proto-executives”,… More

• The Learning of Liberty: The Educational Ideas of the American Founders

  - Pangle, Lorraine Smith, and Thomas L. Pangle. The Learning of Liberty: The Educational Ideas of the American Founders. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas, 1993.

• The Federalist: Design for a Constitutional Republic

  - Carey, George Wescott. The Federalist: Design for a Constitutional Republic. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1989.

• Republics Ancient and Modern: Inventions of Prudence: Constituting the American Regime

  - Rahe, Paul Anthony. Republics Ancient and Modern: Inventions of Prudence: Constituting the American Regime. Chapel Hill, N.C.: University of North Carolina Press, 1994.

• The Mild Voice of Reason: Deliberative Democracy and American National Government

  - Bessette, Joseph M. The Mild Voice of Reason: Deliberative Democracy and American National Government. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994.

• Toward a More Perfect Union: Writings of Herbert Storing

  - Storing, Herbert. Toward a More Perfect Union. Edited by Joseph M. Bessette. Washington, DC: AEI Press, 1995.
  From the editor: In this definitive collection, the writings of Herbert J. Storing have been assembled into six categories: the Founding Fathers and their legacy; race relations in America; rights and the public interest; bureaucracy and big government;… More

• Madison on Sympathy, Virtue, and Ambition in the ‘Federalist Papers’

  - Sorenson, Leonard R. “Madison on Sympathy, Virtue, and Ambition in the ‘Federalist Papers’.” Polity 27, no. 3 (April 1, 1995): 431–446.

• The Natural Rights Republic: Studies in the Foundation of the American Political Tradition

  - Zuckert, Michael P. The Natural Rights Republic: Studies in the Foundation of the American Political Tradition. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1996.
  In The Natural Rights Republic, political theorist Michael Zuckert counters contemporary confusion by offering an insightful study of the concept that dominated the mindset of the founding generation, the natural rights philosophy. Zuckert offers a new… More

• Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution

  - Rakove, Jack N. Original Meanings: Politics and Ideas in the Making of the Constitution. New York: A.A. Knopf, 1996.

• The Noblest Minds

  - McNamara, Peter. The Noblest Minds: Fame, Honor, and the American Founding. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1999.
  Ever since Douglass Adair convincingly demonstrated that a love of fame was central to the American founding, political scientists and historians have started to view the founders and their acts in a new light. In The Noblest Minds, ten distinguished scholars… More

• The Federalist Papers: A Commentary: “the Baton Rouge Lectures”

  - Allen, W. B., and Kevin A. Cloonan. The Federalist Papers: A Commentary: "the Baton Rouge Lectures". New York: P. Lang, 2000.
  This book tells the story of The Federalist Papers as an accessible approach to the principles of the United States government. When looking at The Federalist Papers or the documents of the Constitutional Convention of 1787, one realizes that the writers of… More

• Duty Bound: Responsibility and American Public Life

  - Blitz, Mark. Duty Bound: Responsibility and American Public Life. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2005.

• Interpreting the Founding: Guide to the Enduring Debates Over the Origins and Foundations of the American Republic

  - Gibson, Alan Ray. Interpreting the Founding: Guide to the Enduring Debates Over the Origins and Foundations of the American Republic. Lawrence, Kan: University Press of Kansas, 2006.

• Understanding the Founding: The Crucial Questions

  - Gibson, Alan Ray. Understanding the Founding: The Crucial Questions. Lawrence, Kan: University Press of Kansas, 2007.

• The Discretionary President: The Promise and Peril of Executive Power

  - Kleinerman, Benjamin A. The Discretionary President: The Promise and Peril of Executive Power. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2009.

• As Far as Republican Principles Will Admit: Essays by Martin Diamond

  - Diamond, Martin. As Far as Republican Principles Will Admit: Essays by Martin Diamond. Edited by William Schambra. Washington, DC: AEI Press, 1992.
  Essays by one of the preeminent theorists of the American Founding. Of particular interest to students of the Federalist are essays entitled, “Ethics and Politics: the American Way,” “Democracy and the Federalist: A Reconsideration of the… More

• The Founders’ Key: The Divine and Natural Connection between the Declaration and the Constitution and What We Risk by Losing It

  - Arnn, Larry P. The Founders' Key: The Divine and Natural Connection between the Declaration and the Constitution and What We Risk by Losing It. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2012.