American Leviathan: The Paradox of Freedom and Coercion

This text provides an in-depth analysis of the evolution of the American political system, drawing on the work of historian Gary Gerstle. The author explores the fascinating dualism of power in the United States, where rigorous constitutional liberalism protecting individual liberty clashes with the almost unlimited police power of individual states. The article details the mechanisms of state expansion, such as strategies of surrogacy and privatization, that allowed the federal government to build a powerful apparatus of influence despite formal constraints. Tracing historical turning points, from the New Deal to contemporary disputes over laboratories of democracy, allows us to understand how the American Leviathan evolved to reconcile conflicting claims to liberty and coercion within a single legal order.