Based on lectures delivered for the US Constitution's bicentennial. Allen (political science, Michigan State U. ) and Cloonan (government, James Madison U.) counter arguments that the Federalist Papers (1787) are not very accessible or relevant to government today by overviewing issues addressed in the 85 essays and specific principles framing current governance. Appends references to these papers in Supreme Court cases. Lacks an index. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR