Unelected
How an Unaccountable Elite is Governing America
«“The Unelected is valuable reading for anyone committed to a republican form of government. Copland identifies multiple aspects of the regulatory state that are fairly opaque and unaccountable but wield considerable unchecked power over Americans, who should expect elections to matter more. His call for public policy efforts to return authority to voters is worthy of serious debate and consideration.”
—Leonard Leo, Co-Chairman, Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies
“In this masterful history, Jim Copland shows how the law of the land became more like the law of the jungle. Who’s responsible? That’s the problem—Nobody. Bureaucrats and lawyers of a certain disposition use law as a weapon for extortion, beyond the control of democratically elected officials and timid judges.”
—Philip K. Howard, author of The Death of Common Sense, and founder of Common Good
“As America emerges from its deepest recession in decades, businesses need clear laws to follow. Unfortunately, shifting regulations, uncertain enforcement, and shakedown lawsuits are far too common. And local officials regularly reach past their borders to interfere with the economies of other states and municipalities. James Copland’s new book explores all these trends and suggests ideas we should be discussing to get on a better path.”
—Thomas J. Donohue, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
“In The Unelected, Jim Copland describes the raft of federal, state, and local officials whose interpretations of law have often overshadowed legislation itself—in a story running up to the current pandemic response. The awareness raised by his insightful historical and legal analysis is a necessary precondition to any institutional solution.”
— Richard A. Epstein, Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law, NYU Law School»
America is highly polarized around elections, but unelected actors make many of the decisions that affect our lives. In this lucid history, James R. Copland explains how unaccountable agents have taken over much of the U. Les mer
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America is highly polarized around elections, but unelected actors make many of the decisions that affect our lives. In this lucid history, James R. Copland explains how unaccountable agents have taken over much of the U.S. government apparatus.
Congress has largely abdicated its authority. "Independent" administrative agencies churn out thousands of new regulations every year. Courts have enabled these rulemakers to expand their powers beyond those authorized by law-and have constrained executive efforts to rein in the bureaucratic behemoth.
No ordinary citizen can know what is legal and what is not. There are some 300,000 federal crimes, 98 percent of which were created by administrative action. The proliferation of rules gives enormous discretion to unelected enforcers, and the severity of sanctions can be ruinous to citizens who unwittingly violate a regulation.
Outside the bureaucracy, private attorneys regulate our conduct through lawsuits. Most of the legal theories underlying these suits were never voted upon by our elected representatives. A combination of historical accident, decisions by judges and law professors, and self-interested advocacy by litigators has built an onerous and expensive legal regime.
Finally, state and local officials may be accountable to their own voters, but some reach further afield, pursuing agendas to dictate the terms of national commerce. These new antifederalists are subjecting the citizens of Wyoming and Mississippi to the whims of the electorates of New York and San Francisco-contrary to the constitutional design.
In these ways, the unelected have assumed substantial control of the American republic, upended the rule of law, given the United States the world's costliest legal system, and inverted the Constitution's federalism. Copland caps off his account with ideas for charting a corrective course back to democratic accountability.
Congress has largely abdicated its authority. "Independent" administrative agencies churn out thousands of new regulations every year. Courts have enabled these rulemakers to expand their powers beyond those authorized by law-and have constrained executive efforts to rein in the bureaucratic behemoth.
No ordinary citizen can know what is legal and what is not. There are some 300,000 federal crimes, 98 percent of which were created by administrative action. The proliferation of rules gives enormous discretion to unelected enforcers, and the severity of sanctions can be ruinous to citizens who unwittingly violate a regulation.
Outside the bureaucracy, private attorneys regulate our conduct through lawsuits. Most of the legal theories underlying these suits were never voted upon by our elected representatives. A combination of historical accident, decisions by judges and law professors, and self-interested advocacy by litigators has built an onerous and expensive legal regime.
Finally, state and local officials may be accountable to their own voters, but some reach further afield, pursuing agendas to dictate the terms of national commerce. These new antifederalists are subjecting the citizens of Wyoming and Mississippi to the whims of the electorates of New York and San Francisco-contrary to the constitutional design.
In these ways, the unelected have assumed substantial control of the American republic, upended the rule of law, given the United States the world's costliest legal system, and inverted the Constitution's federalism. Copland caps off his account with ideas for charting a corrective course back to democratic accountability.
Detaljer
- Forlag
- Encounter Books,USA
- Innbinding
- Innbundet
- Språk
- Engelsk
- ISBN
- 9781641771207
- Utgivelsesår
- 2020
- Format
- 23 x 15 cm
Anmeldelser
«“The Unelected is valuable reading for anyone committed to a republican form of government. Copland identifies multiple aspects of the regulatory state that are fairly opaque and unaccountable but wield considerable unchecked power over Americans, who should expect elections to matter more. His call for public policy efforts to return authority to voters is worthy of serious debate and consideration.”
—Leonard Leo, Co-Chairman, Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies
“In this masterful history, Jim Copland shows how the law of the land became more like the law of the jungle. Who’s responsible? That’s the problem—Nobody. Bureaucrats and lawyers of a certain disposition use law as a weapon for extortion, beyond the control of democratically elected officials and timid judges.”
—Philip K. Howard, author of The Death of Common Sense, and founder of Common Good
“As America emerges from its deepest recession in decades, businesses need clear laws to follow. Unfortunately, shifting regulations, uncertain enforcement, and shakedown lawsuits are far too common. And local officials regularly reach past their borders to interfere with the economies of other states and municipalities. James Copland’s new book explores all these trends and suggests ideas we should be discussing to get on a better path.”
—Thomas J. Donohue, Chief Executive Officer, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
“In The Unelected, Jim Copland describes the raft of federal, state, and local officials whose interpretations of law have often overshadowed legislation itself—in a story running up to the current pandemic response. The awareness raised by his insightful historical and legal analysis is a necessary precondition to any institutional solution.”
— Richard A. Epstein, Laurence A. Tisch Professor of Law, NYU Law School»