Jack Rakove

Biography: 

Coe Professor of History and American Studies, Stanford University

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Article I Section 10

by Richard A. Epstein, Jack Rakovevia Constitution Center
Thursday, February 9, 2017

Article I, Section 10 contains a long, somewhat diverse list of prohibitions on the power of the states to engage in certain activities. Understanding its significance depends on first placing it within the larger framework of Article I, which is primarily devoted to setting out the structure of Congress and then enumerating its legislative powers.

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THE ELECTORAL COLLEGE'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE: Should We Abolish the Electoral College?

with Jack Rakove, Tara Rossvia Uncommon Knowledge
Monday, December 13, 2004

As required by the Constitution, the president of the United States is elected not by the national popular vote but by the vote of the Electoral College. In the Electoral College, each state receives as many votes as it has members of Congress. Because every state has two senators and is guaranteed at least one House member, votes of small states count more heavily than votes of large states. Has the Electoral College served the nation well? Or should it be abolished and replaced by a system in which every vote counts the same? Peter Robinson speaks with Jack Rakove and Tara Ross

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A SLAVE TO THE SYSTEM? Thomas Jefferson and Slavery

with Jack Rakove, Garry Willsvia Uncommon Knowledge
Monday, January 19, 2004

When the Constitution of the United States was ratified in 1789, the infamous "three-fifths clause" gave the southern slaveholding states disproportionate power within the federal government. To what extent did this southern advantage help the southerner Thomas Jefferson win the presidency? And to what extent did Jefferson, author of the phrase "all men are created equal," use the power of his presidency to preserve and perpetuate the institution of slavery?

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FATHERS KNOWN BEST: The Founding Fathers

with Joyce Appleby, Jack Rakove, Alan Taylorvia Uncommon Knowledge
Tuesday, September 25, 2001

Biographies of George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and John Adams and histories of the revolutionary era have been bestsellers and Pulitzer Prize winners in the past several years. What explains this recent surge of interest in the founding fathers of the American nation? What does the fascination with the founding fathers tell us about our own time? What would the founders have to say about the state of the nation today?

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UP IN ARMS OVER THE SECOND AMENDMENT: The Meaning of the Second Amendment

with Jack Rakove, Eugene Volokhvia Uncommon Knowledge
Tuesday, October 3, 2000

Does the Second Amendment to the Constitution confer an individual right to bear arms or not? Why is there so much disagreement about the meaning of this Amendment? What does the historical evidence tell us about the intentions of the framers of the Constitution in writing this amendment? To what extent does our interpretation of the Second Amendment effect efforts at gun control today?

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