Brant, Irving (1885–1976)
BRANT, IRVING (1885–1976)
Irving Newton Brant was a journalist, biographer, and constitutional historian. A strong supporter of President franklin d. roosevelt, Brant published Storm over the Constitution in 1936; a vigorous defense of the constitutionality of the New Deal, it strongly influenced Roosevelt's later attempt to enlarge the membership of the Supreme Court. Brant's concentration in this book on the intent of the Framers of the Constitution led him to begin a biography of james madison. Now regarded as definitive, his six-volume biography (1941–1961) had two aims: the rehabilitation of Madison's reputation as constitutional theorist and political leader, and the refutation of the states ' rights interpretation of American history (which denied that the Revolutionary generation considered the newly created United States to be one nation). Brant's other works include The Bill of Rights (1965), a history championing the absolutist interpretation of the bill of rights espoused by Justices hugo l. black and william o. douglas, and Impeachment: Trials and Errors (1972).
Richard B. Bernstein
(1986)