KC Johnson

This course explores American constitutional history from the Revolutionary Era to the present day. It will be taught partly synchronously–in two groups–and partly asynchronously.

Requirements:

• Document Analysis (40%)
• Participation (30%)
• Case Presentations (20%)
• Attendance (10%)

Required Books:

• Dale Carpenter, Flagrant Conduct
• Eric Foner, A Short History of Reconstruction
• Michael Klarman, From Jim Crow to Civil Rights 
• Kevin McMahon, A Supreme Court Unlike Any Other
• Jeff Shesol, Supreme Power

Schedule:

Week 1. Foundations

• Articles of Confederation
• Constitution (as originally adopted)
• James Wilson speech (1787)
• Patrick Henry speech (1788)
• size of republic: Brutus 1; Federalist 10
• Military Power: Brutus 8; Federalist 8
• Nature of Senate: Brutus 16; Federalist 62
• Original Bill of Rights (as passed by Congress)
• Hamilton Pacificus letter 1 (1793)
• Madison speech on House power and Jay’s Treaty (1796)

(asynchronous): Slavery, Expansion, and the Crisis of the Constitution

Week 2. Reconstruction & the Gilded Age

• Eric Foner, A Short History of Reconstruction

Cases:

1. Civil Rights Cases: 
2. Plessy v. Ferguson:

(asynchronous): The Progressive Constitution

Week 3: FDR

• Jeff Shesol, Supreme Power

cases:

1. Korematsu v. United States: 
2. West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette: 

(asynchronous): The Cold War & the Constitution

Week 4: Civil Rights & the Constitution

Michael Klarman, From Jim Crow to Civil Rights

cases:

1. Sweatt v. Painter:
2. Smith v. Allwright:  

(asynchronous): Political Scandal & the Constitution

Week 5: The Court and Social Issues

• Dale Carpenter, Flagrant Conduct

cases:

1. Bethel School District v. Fraser: 
2. United States v. Virginia:

(asynchronous): Approaching the Modern Era

Week 6. The Modern Era

• Kevin McMahon, A Supreme Court Unlike Any Other

Cases:

• Watson v. RNC:
• Trump v. Barbara: