5739. FDR v. The Constitution The Court-Packing Fight and the Triumph of Democracy, by Burt Solomon (read 10 Mar 2021) This book covers much the same territory as Supreme Power, which I read on 6 March, immediately before I read this book. I found this book extremely riveting reading, although not as scholarly as Supreme Power and the title of this book is, I think, inaccurate, or may be misunderstood. The 1937 fight over the Supreme Court did result in a defeat for FDR but he got just what he wanted in that during and after the fight the Supreme Court upheld all of the New Deal laws which came before it and within a short time after the fight FDR appointed the justices he wanted so that the Court became more liberal and recognized that the country needed what FDR tried to do for it. Truly, FDR lost the battle in 1937 but won the war, as anyone who knows what the Court did after 1936 must admit. In fact, I am glad that the Court was not expanded in 1937 but if FDR had not tried to expand it who knows what the Court might have done. It did not want to be expanded and so it handed down more reasonable and abler decisions and the country was better off, thanks to FDR's actions. ( )

Excellent political history of the effort to pack the court by FDR. While strong on descriptions of personalities and political considerations, somewhat weak on legal analysis of the actual cases which prompted the effort. ( )

This was a great book about FDR and his court packing scheme. The book also included pictures which I always enjoy since it enhances the whole experience. Burt Solomon focused on the court packing scheme of FDR and the people who were involved with it both on FDR's side and the justices involved.

This is not extremely in depth about the whole court packing scheme but it is a good read for anyone who wants to learn more of this one snapshot in history. ( )