Field Notes on the Republic

Near v. Minnesota, the Case That Buried Prior Restraint

Near v. Minnesota, the Case That Buried Prior R...

Michael Fowler

On June 1, 1931, the Supreme Court ruled for a newspaper almost nobody would want to defend, a scandal sheet, by a single vote, and settled one of the most...

Near v. Minnesota, the Case That Buried Prior R...

Michael Fowler

On June 1, 1931, the Supreme Court ruled for a newspaper almost nobody would want to defend, a scandal sheet, by a single vote, and settled one of the most...

The Idea of a Loyal Opposition

The Idea of a Loyal Opposition

Michael Fowler

The party out of power in Britain is called His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, and the phrase only sounds like a contradiction. It is one of the most important ideas a...

The Idea of a Loyal Opposition

Michael Fowler

The party out of power in Britain is called His Majesty's Loyal Opposition, and the phrase only sounds like a contradiction. It is one of the most important ideas a...

How Americans Came to Vote in Secret

How Americans Came to Vote in Secret

Michael Fowler

Picture an American election in the mid-nineteenth century: no booth, no curtain, often a party-printed ballot handed over in full view of a watching crowd. The private ballot is not...

How Americans Came to Vote in Secret

Michael Fowler

Picture an American election in the mid-nineteenth century: no booth, no curtain, often a party-printed ballot handed over in full view of a watching crowd. The private ballot is not...

A Republic, If You Can Keep It

A Republic, If You Can Keep It

Michael Fowler

A republic, if you can keep it, the line attributed to Franklin at the close of the Convention. Historians treat the anecdote with caution, but the second half is true...

A Republic, If You Can Keep It

Michael Fowler

A republic, if you can keep it, the line attributed to Franklin at the close of the Convention. Historians treat the anecdote with caution, but the second half is true...