Understanding the Constitution: Strict Construction, Textualism, and Originalism
Reporters and opinion writers often classify Supreme Court justices as “originalists,” “textualists,” or “strict constructionists.” And they often misuse those terms. For example, a Dec. 9 column in Slate treated all three terms as synonymous. That’s entirely wrong....
When Can an Originalist Scholar Begin with the Constitution’s Text?
This article first appeared in The Originalism Blog on March 1, 2021. It is somewhat technical, and I recommend it only for constitutional wonks. I. The question I recently wrote a post for the Federalist Society Blog, in which I examined the Constitution’s...
Underselling Originalism
Constitutional originalists frequently understate the case for constitutional originalism. Professor John McGinnis is a prominent and persuasive exponent of originalism. However, in his posting, The Empire Strikes Back Against Originalism, which Michael...