By Peter L. Biro What is The Notwithstanding Clause In 1982, Canada amended its Constitution, patriating it from the UK Parliament and entrenching basic civil liberties in a Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the Charter). Section 33 of the Charter - the “notwithstanding clause” (NWC) - allows Parliament or a provincial legislature to pass an... Continue Reading →
Elizabeth C. Economy is serving as the Senior Advisor for China to the Secretary of Commerce. She is on leave from her role as a Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution. Previously she served as the Asia Director at the Council for Foreign Relations. Her past books include The Third Revolution: Xi Jinping and the New... Continue Reading →
By Justin Kempf A review of Buddhism and Comparative Constitutional Law edited by Tom Ginsburg and Benjamin Schonthal. Buddhism and Constitutional LawOver the past year I have made a real effort to explore constitutional law. Americans talk quite a bit about their constitution, but they know very little about constitutions in other countries. They often presume... Continue Reading →
By Stephan Kyburz The Swiss Federal Council – Collective Executive Power On Tuesday, December 7th, the Swiss parliament elected two new Federal Councillors. While Albert Rösti (55) of the People’s Party (SVP) was elected as expected, Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (59) of the Social-Democratic Party (SP) was a surprise winner, defeating the favored Eva Herzog (SP). Mrs.... Continue Reading →
By Justin Kempf A review of House of the People: Parliament and the Making of Indian Democracy by Ronojoy Sen House of the People For the past several years most of the popular literature on Indian democracy has focused on its shortcomings. So many books and articles fixate on Narendra Modi, Hindu Nationalism, and threats to... Continue Reading →
By María Isabel Puerta Riera A massive fraud of this type and magnitude allows for the termination of all rules, regulations, & articles, even those found in the Constitution. Donald J. Trump, December 3, 2022 The Age of Reality TV in the White House The arrival of Donald J. Trump to the White House was... Continue Reading →
Richard Wike is director of global attitudes research at Pew Research Center. He conducts research and writes about international public opinion on a variety of topics, such as America’s global image, the rise of China, democracy, and globalization. His latest report (coauthored with Laura Silver, Janell Fetterolf, Christine Huang, Sarah Austin, Laura Clancy and Sneha... Continue Reading →
By Dan Slater After Elections, the Losers Don't Always Lose After enlightenment, says the Zen proverb, the laundry. It’s a wise statement about how to approach democracy as much as life itself. Even when elections deliver breakthrough democratic results, they’re typically followed by a messy but necessary business of forming coalitions and cabinets. The difference... Continue Reading →
By Justin Kempf Autocratic Ambiguity The precise line between democracy and autocracy was never entirely clear. Part of the problem was the inability of autocratic government to govern autocratically. Even the most capable autocrats rely on advisors and civil servants to carry out their wills. Moreover, they find it necessary to delegate significant authority to... Continue Reading →
By Cathryn Grothe A Spotlight on Qatar The international spotlight is on Qatar for the 2022 World Cup. It’s not only the football matches that are receiving global attention, but also Qatar’s harrowing human rights record. To fully appreciate the controversy surrounding this year's host country, it is important to understand the long history of... Continue Reading →
