George Mason And The Tenth Amendment

Efforts to understand why the Tenth Amendment has so altered the American economic and social landscape rarely mention the name of George Mason. But Mason’s role in creating the Tenth Amendment, which began with his Declaration of Rights, can serve to clarify the provocative history and the present-day importance of the Tenth Amendment. Mason, the Virginia Declaration of Rights, and the history of the Tenth Amendment are all ripe for reconsideration of the connections between them. John C. Rand explores the factors motivating Mason’s interest in rights in the emerging republic and through this lens examines the significance of the Tenth Amendment through the modern era in an engaging narrative following the twists and turns of judicial decisions around it through history.

John Rand is an attorney and lives with his family in Mason Neck, Virginia. He received a PhD in American history from George Mason University in 2024.