Encyclopedia of Constitutional Amendments, Proposed Amendments and Amending Issues, 1789-2002 2nd ed

A new, thoroughly revised edition of the only major reference source on constitutional amendments and the amendment process. Since 1787, more than 11,000 amendments have been proposed for the Constitution. Yet only 27 have passed. This handy one-volume encyclopedia offers the whole story of constitutional amendments: the rigorous ratification process; the significance of the 27 amendments that made it into the Constitution; and the notable and sometimes preposterous topics of the thousands that didn't. Extensively revised and updated, the second edition of the award-winning Encyclopedia of Constitutional Amendments, Proposed Amendments, and Amending Issues, 1789-2001 provides everything the student of the Constitution ever wanted to know about amendments and the amendment process. This title provides background social historical material on successful and unsuccessful amendments and an overview of the thousands of failed amendments. This includes a proposed constitution for a new Caribbean concrete island to be named Oceana. Readers will also encounter people like Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Everett Dirksen, and James Madison, who championed specific amendments.;Likewise, influential thinkers such as William Penn, Thomas Jefferson, and Francis Lieber are cited for their roles in shaping our philosophical understanding of the amending process.