The Originalism Blog

The Blog of the Center for the Study of Constitutional Originalism at the University of San Diego School of Law

Category: Film

Sean Kammer: Anti-Intellectualism, the Supreme Court, and the Legitimacy of Law
Michael Ramsey

Sean Kammer (University of South Dakota Law School) has posted 'Whether or Not Special Expertise Is Needed': Anti-Intellectualism, the Supreme Court, and the Legitimacy of Law (South Dakota Law Review, forthcoming) on SSRN.  Here is the abstract: Recently, there has deservedly been much consternation regarding what some see as the increased politicization of the judiciary […]

Kent Barnett: Due Process for Article III—Rethinking Murray’s Lessee
Michael Ramsey

Kent H. Barnett (University of Georgia School of Law) has posted Due Process for Article III—Rethinking Murray's Lessee (Geo. Mason L. Rev. __ (2019)) on SSRN.  Here is the abstract:  The Founders sought to protect federal judges’ impartiality primarily because those judges would review the political branches’ actions. To that end, Article III judges retain their […]

George Will on Hate Crimes and Federal Powers
Michael Ramsey

In the Washington Post, George Will: The federal hate crime law is both unconstitutional and unwise.  After showing off his swastika tattoo, Randy Metcalf became involved in a barroom brawl. One of his opponents was an African American, whom he and his friends knocked unconscious. Metcalf repeatedly kicked him in the head and, according to a witness, […]

Prohibiting Court Packing by Constitutional Amendment
Mike Rappaport

Jim Lindgren has proposed a constitutional amendment that would constitutionalize the nine-member Supreme Court. The key language is: The size of the Supreme Court of the United States shall be nine members, consisting of one Chief Justice and eight Associate Justices, though from time to time one or more of these nine offices may be […]

Aziz Huq on Removing Justice Kavanaugh
Michael Ramsey

From the Washington Post last week, Aziz Huq (Chicago): Two ways Democrats can remove Kavanaugh — without impeaching him.  (At first I thought this was a parody that Professor Huq cleverly suckered the Post into publishing, but the University of Chicago website is promoting it like a serious article).  Here is the first way: [A] Democratic […]

An Important Difference Between Historians and Originalist Law Professors
Mike Rappaport

Recently, I was having a discussion with a law professor who looks at matters from a historical perspective. While such law professors are not professional historians, many of them have adopted the historian's perspective. During our discussion, one aspect of the dispute between historians and originalist law professors became crystal clear. When historians are making […]

Jonathan Gienapp on the Un-Fixed Constitution
Michael Ramsey

In the Boston Globe, Jonathan Gienapp (Stanford history): Originalism is the rage, but Constitution’s authors had something else in mind.  From the introduction:  Originalism continues to surge in popularity, winning converts across the federal judiciary, law school faculties, and the political ranks, while the Supreme Court often decides cases based ostensibly on what the Constitution meant […]