Christopher Wolfe on Charles Thach on Executive Power
Michael Ramsey
At Law & Liberty, Christopher James Wolfe (St. Thomas – Houston, Political Science): Dispatching Humphrey’s Executor. From the introduction: For most court watchers, the blockbuster case of 2026 was the birthright citizenship case, Trump v. Barbara. But for teachers of National Powers cases like myself, the blockbuster was Trump v. Slaughter on the president’s power to remove a […]
Elias Neibart: Lawyer’s Meaning is Lawful Meaning
Michael Ramsey
Elias Neibart (Law Clerk to Judge Steven J. Menashi, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, 2025–26) has posted Lawyer’s Meaning is Lawful Meaning (56 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Many textualists think that, when we interpret texts, our goal is to uncover their “ordinary meaning.” We have to put ourselves in […]
Jonathan Goldstein: The Militia of the Sea
Michael Ramsey
Jonathan Goldstein (University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School) has posted The Militia of the Sea: The Marque and Reprisal Clause as Textual Proof of Private Heavy-Arms Ownership at the Founding (54 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Courts and litigants increasingly say the Second Amendment reaches only the weapons one person can carry. The […]
Two New Bloggers: Charlie Capps and Ryan Snyder
Mike Rappaport
We are happy to welcome two new bloggers to the Originalism Blog: Charlie Capps from the Law School at Arizona State and Ryan Snyder from the University of Missouri School of Law. Both Charlie and Ryan are excellent scholars, and we are very happy that they have agreed to join us. Charlie’s first post is […]
Glenn Reynolds Reviews Carson Holloway’s “No Liberty to Libel”
Michael Ramsey
At Law & Liberty, Glenn Reynolds: Sullivan Revisited. From the introduction: Is New York Times v. Sullivan, the case in which the Supreme Court sharply limited libel suits by public officials—a group later expanded to “public figures”—now on shaky ground? Not long ago that would have been unthinkable. But nowadays, particularly in the wake of a […]
Elias Neibart on the Birthright Citizenship Dissents
Michael Ramsey
At Civitas Outlook, Elias Neibart (Harvard Law School JD ’25): Originalism and the ‘Barbara’ Dissenters. From the introduction: This essay is not about whether the Court [in Trump v. Barbara] got the case right or wrong. Instead, it addresses a recent methodological criticism of the Barbara dissents—most notably Justice Kavanaugh’s dissent in part. Everyone agrees that […]
Elizabeth Taylor and Birthright Citizenship [Updated]
David Weisberg
The first sentence of the 14th Amendment reads, in relevant part: “All persons born … in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.” Fellow blogger Andrew Hyman correctly notes that this assertion has the form “A is B and C,” which implies “A is […]
Andrea Scoseria Katz & Ofra Bloch: The Major Questions Doctrine After Learning Resources
Michael Ramsey
Andrea Scoseria Katz (Washington University in St. Louis School of Law) & Ofra Bloch (Buchmann Faculty of Law, Tel Aviv University) have posted The Major Questions Doctrine After Learning Resources: Legality and the Limits of Presidential Power (37 pages) on SSRN. Here is the abstract: Administrative law has entered a period of profound uncertainty. By dismantling […]
Haley Proctor on “Trapped in Amber”
Michael Ramsey
At SCOTUSblog, Haley Proctor: What is “trapped in amber”? An originalist explanation. From the introduction: Anyone watching the Supreme Court this past term may have remarked on the frequency with which the justices talk about fossilized tree resin. Consider: The court in Trump v. Cook: “We see no reason, however, why our central bank ought to […]
CJ Roberts’ Reasoning in Trump v. Barbara
Andrew Hyman
The Court decided Trump v. Barbara on June 30. None of the judges disputed Justice Alito’s assertion at the beginning of his dissent: “This is one of the most important decisions in the history of the Court….” The Court gave a rather paltry explanation as to the most important point of this most important case. Section […]