State constitutionalism is on the rise, and you need only check the headlines — same-sex marriage, health care reform — for confirmation.
California’s Proposition 8, after all, amended the California Constitution to recognize only male-female marriages, a provision that may or may not violate the U.S. Constitution. And several states, in seeking ways to fight federal health care mandates, have resorted to constitutional amendments or statutes as well. Tension between the U.S. Constitution and the charters of the states is at a high point.
