In the second republic of 1848-51 he was briefly foreign minister and drafter of a constitution that lasted barely a year.

ECONOMIST: Liberty and democracy

Blakey, who was the principal drafter of RICO while counsel to the Senate Judiciary Committee, can only stand idly by as his creation takes on a life of its own.

FORBES: Can, and Should, NewsCorp Actually Be Tried Like the Mafia?

Robert Stern, the president of the non-partisan Centre for Governmental Studies in Los Angeles (and a drafter of initiatives since the 1970s), believes that direct democracy cannot and should not be ditched wholesale.

ECONOMIST: Direct democracy