[gutzmank]

The US Government spent over $6 billion on the war, and the CS Government spent over $2 billion. There were approximately 4 million slaves, and the mean value was approximately $800, which means their total value was about $3.2 billion–far less than was spent on the war.

[gutzmank]

You’re welcome.

[gutzmank]

This kind of course has become increasingly popular with college administrators. To my recollection, articles describing such courses have been posted by the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI), National Review, Chronicles: A Magazine of American Culture, The Weekly Standard, the American Enterprise Institute, LewRockwell.com, and others. They’re all over the internet.

[gutzmank]

She could read plain English: a ban on sex discrimination could and, in light of intellectuals’ tendency at the time, obviously would mean conscription of women.

[gutzmank]

Yes, indeed.

[gutzmank]

It’s clear that the Deep South states seceded because Lincoln had been elected, and they saw that as a threat to slavery and an indication that the northern states intended not to abide by the Constitution in that regard. The Middle South states, however, did not secede until Lincoln began to take unconstitutional actions to put down Deep South secession.

The best book on the Deep South is Charles B. Dew’s Apostles of Disunion…, and the best book about Middle South secession is Crofts’ Reluctant Confederates….

[gutzmank]

You could start with Haynes’ Venona.

[gutzmank]

I’d go through the Western Civ. courses first, then the US survey courses, then whatever floats your boat after that.

[gutzmank]

I like Silbey’s.

[gutzmank]

Yes, there are a couple of others who come to mind. I’m not much interested in this topic, however.

[gutzmank]

The various Cabinet offices have been created by Congress. They are constitutional insofar as their functions are constitutional. So, the positions of secretary of state, secretary of defense, and secretary of the treasury are constitutional, while those of secretary of housing and urban development, secretary of transportation, and secretary of agriculture are not.

The Constitution says (Article II, Section 1) that the executive power will be vested in a president of the United States. Other Executive Branch officials are his subordinates. Thus, it is perfectly proper for him to give them orders–so long as what he orders them to do is legal.

[gutzmank]

Slavery is barred by the 13th Amendment, so yes, the Federal Government has a rightful role in that area.

In general, as Jefferson wrote in his famous memorandum on Hamilton’s Bank Bill (1791), the underlying principle of the Constitution is that the Federal Government has only the few powers delegated to it via the Constitution. Other matters are to be addressed by government, if at all, at the state level.

[gutzmank]

The place to start is Raoul Berger’s Impeachment: The Constitutional Problems. That’s an excellent book, and it lays out all the issues.

[gutzmank]

Sure, but it ranks him the best president ever, it only gives Tyler six pages.

[gutzmank]

Sure. Go.

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