Gregory Ablavsky
Article
Empire States: The Coming of Dual Federalism
In the standard account of federalism’s eighteenth-century origins, the Framers divided government power among two sovereigns to protect individual liberties. This Article offers an alternative history. It emphasizes that federalism was a form of centralization—a shift of authority from diffuse quas…
Article
Beyond the Indian Commerce Clause
This Article uses unexamined historical sources to argues that the Indian Commerce Clause, open-ended when written, was a minor component of eighteenth-century constitutional thought. This history provides a more solid foundation for doctrinal principles derided as incoherent, and suggests more cabi…