Laws, Men and Machines

'Michael Foley's book is marvellous... A serious exploration, careful, and controlled, of a seminal idea in American politics' - Professor Aaron Widlavsky'Foley’s book is a tour de force. His thesis is original and he pursues carefully.' - Times Higher Education Supplement'It is rare to find a book with a genuinely original slant on old problems, and Michael Foley’s slant is both interesting and revealing.' - Professor Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr 'The strength of the book is that it is a sustained analysis of the origins, evolution and significance of a sometimes crucially important idea in US politics … This is a major work and one likely to frame the debate for years to come.' - American Politics Review No 26, July 1991'Michael Foley has written a splendid book; the intellectual grasp is as broad as the American continent itself'- Professor Richard Rose

• 1. Newtonian mechanics and American constitutionalism  2. The death of constitutional Newtonianism  3. The perpetuation of constitutional mechanics  4. The Presidency, the Congress and the separation of paradigms  5. A government of laws, men and mechanics