Political Quotes

Walter Bagehot: The practical arguments and the legal disquisitions in America are often like those of trustees carrying out a misdrawn…

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The practical arguments and the legal disquisitions in America are often like those of trustees carrying out a misdrawn will--the sense of what they mean is good, but it can never be worked out fully or defended simply, so hampered is it by the old words of an old testament.
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Walter Bagehot

Editor's note · Context

Bagehot critiques the complexities of American constitutional law by comparing it to a misdrawn will, highlighting the challenges of interpretation.

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