Full Description
Situated between two different constitutional traditions, those of the United Kingdom and the United States, Canada has maintained a distinctive third way: federal, parliamentary, and flexible. Yet in recent years it seems that Canadian constitutional culture has been moving increasingly in an American direction. Through the prorogation crises of 2008 and 2009, its senate reform proposals, and the appointment process for Supreme Court judges, Stephen Harper's Conservative government has repeatedly shown a tendency to push Canada further into the US constitutional orbit.
Red, White, and Kind of Blue? is a comparative legal analysis of this creeping Americanization, as well as a probing examination of the costs and benefits that come with it. Comparing British, Canadian, and American constitutional traditions, David Schneiderman offers a critical perspective on the Americanization of Canadian constitutional practice and a timely warning about its unexamined consequences.
Contents
Introduction
Chapter One. "No Servile Copy": Constitutional Differences That Matter
Chapter Two. President or Prime Minister? Prorogation 2008
Chapter Three. The King's Prerogative vs. Parliamentary Privilege: Prorogation 2009
Chapter Four. A "More Salutary Check"? Electing the Canadian Senate
Chapter Five. Appointing Justices: Supreme Court Nominees and the Press
Conclusion
