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What Would Madison Say?

Author

Listed:
  • Bruce M. Owen

    (Stanford University)

Abstract

Lawful political corruption is a costly feature of modern American politics, and a failure of Madisonian democracy. The propensity of political agents to self-service at the expense of the peoples’ well-being may not have changed much since 1787, but that propensity is now applied to a vast government that touches virtually every aspect of our lives. After examining conventional solutions to the problem of political corruption, this paper explores possible Madisonian remedies—that is, remedies invoking rivalrous political institutions. The paper con-cludes with a proposal for the addition of an "umpire" function to U.S. constitutional structure. Officials performing this function would have the power to veto legislation that significantly re-duces aggregate well-being or that produces regressive redistribution. Historical precedents, illustrative details, and impediments are discussed.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruce M. Owen, 2015. "What Would Madison Say?," Discussion Papers 15-006, Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research.
    • Handle: RePEc:sip:dpaper:15-006
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    File URL: http://www-siepr.stanford.edu/repec/sip/15-006.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Vladimir Gimpelson & Daniel Treisman, 2018. "Misperceiving inequality," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 27-54, March.
    2. Charles I. Jones & Paul M. Romer, 2010. "The New Kaldor Facts: Ideas, Institutions, Population, and Human Capital," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 2(1), pages 224-245, January.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Madisonian democracy; political economy; constitutional law; corruption; Citizens United.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • H1 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government
    • K1 - Law and Economics - - Basic Areas of Law

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