Theorizing the Foreign Affairs Constitution

Abstract:     
This article applies international relations theory to derive estimates of the U.S. Constitution's provisions pertaining to foreign relations that Americans would have created in light of the United States' militarily weak condition at the time of founding. It then questions the value of originalism as a technique of constitutional interpretation with respect to the foreign affairs Constitution given the dramatic change in the world power status of the United States.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 34

Keywords: Constitution, foreign relations, foreign affairs, originalism, international relations theory

JEL Classification: K00, K33

working papers series