James Burling on Regulatory Takings and Originalism
Michael Ramsey
James Burling at Pacific Legal Foundation: Yes, Justice Thomas, the Doctrine of Regulatory Takings is Originalist. From the introduction: In his dissent in Murr v. Wisconsin, Justice Thomas opined that “[t]he Court, however, has never purported to ground those precedents in the Constitution as it was originally understood.” and “[i]n my view, it would be desirable […]
Textualism from Justice Elena Kagan
Michael Ramsey
Jonathan R. Nash at The Hill: Justice Kagan Channels Scalia in Textualist Supreme Court Opinion. From the introduction: A fair amount of attention has focused on the first opinion — in the case of Henson v. Santander Consumer USA — authored by newly-minted Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch. But the Court’s opinion in another case decided in […]
Randy Barnett on the Declaration of Independence
Michael Ramsey
Randy Barnett at The Volokh Conspiracy: What the Declaration of Independence Said and Meant. From the conclusion: The assumption of natural rights expressed in the Declaration of Independence can be summed up by the following proposition: “First comes rights, then comes government.” According to this view: (1) the rights of individuals do not originate with […]
Calvin TerBeek on Originalism and Constitutional Translation
Michael Ramsey
Calvin TerBeek (guest blogging) at The Faculty Lounge: Originalism and Constitutional Translation: Part I. From the Introduction: “One of the reasons I’m supporting Donald Trump this year is, number one, he’s going to put originalists on the Supreme Court, people that believe in fidelity to the Constitution, separation of powers, co-equal branches of government.” So […]
More Originalism from Nonoriginalists: Eric Segall on Standing and the Emoluments Clause
Michael Ramsey
Eric Segall at Dorf on Law: Members of Congress Have Standing in the Emoluments Suit. From the introduction: The President of the United States owns a posh hotel in the shadow of the White House from which he derives foreign-government revenue. Along with income and benefits from many other domestic and international businesses, this revenue […]
Calvin Terbeek on EPA Originalism
Michael Ramsey
Calvin TerBeek (guest blogging) at the Faculty Lounge: Transportable Originalism. From the introduction: The Environmental Protection Agency has long been a bete noire of movement conservatives. The story of "The Other Rights Revolution," the title of Jefferson Decker's important new study of conservative public interest litigation groups' attack on the regulatory state, supplies the bulk of the […]
Greg Weiner on the Role of the Court in the Travel Ban Cases
Michael Ramsey
Greg Weiner at Law and Liberty: Return to Marbury. From the introduction: The travel ban case is headed to the Supreme Court by way of the once redoubtable Fourth and always activist Ninth Circuits, leaving revisionists to wonder how it might have unfolded had it made its way upward through Judge William H. Pryor’s Eleventh. […]
More on the Emoluments Clause
Michael Ramsey
Brianne J. Gorod at Take Care Blog: Because President Trump Has Chosen Not To Go to Congress, Members of Congress Must Go to the Courts. From the introduction: When the nation’s Founders came together to draft a new national charter, they were profoundly concerned about both corruption of federal officeholders and foreign influence over the nation. […]
Senator Mike Lee on the ‘Hamilton Effect’
Michael Ramsey
Senator Mike Lee (R-Ut) writing at Politico Magazine: How the ‘Hamilton Effect Distorts the Founders. From the introduction: Even in an age of declining civic education, a basic understanding of the founding generation thankfully remains part of America’s secular catechism. Over the past decade, the Founding Fathers have even enjoyed a renaissance. Creative storytellers like […]
Originalism and Carpenter v. United States
Michael Ramsey
At Volokh Conspiracy, Orin Kerr: How should an originalist rule in the Fourth Amendment cell-site case? From the introduction: The Supreme Court recently agreed to hear Carpenter v. United States, a case on whether the Fourth Amendment protects historical cell-site records. In this post, I want to focus on a small but potentially important part of […]