The U.S. Constitution requires laws be made by elected representatives. Yet today, most policies are made by administrative agencies whose officials are not elected. Not coincidentally, many Americans increasingly question whether the political system works for the good of the people. In this trenchant intellectual history, Postell demonstrates how modern administrative law has attempted to restore the principles of American constitutionalism, but it has failed to be as effective as earlier approaches to regulation.

Joseph Postell is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, where he teaches courses in Administrative Law, American political thought and American political institutions, particularly Congress and political parties. He received his Ph.D. in 2010 from the University of Dallas.

Postell is the editor (with Bradley C.S. Watson) of Rediscovering Political Economy (Lexington, 2011) and (with Johnathan O’Neill) Toward an American Conservatism: Constitutional Conservatism during the Progressive Era. He has published scholarly articles in The Review of Politics, American Political Thought, and Perspectives on Political Science, and has written for a variety of popular publications including the Claremont Review of Books, the Washington Times, and National Review. He currently resides in Colorado Springs, CO.