He finds that the justices all appear to fit originalist sources to the support of their preferred resolution of cases and originalism cannot therefore be judged to have had an actual constraining effect in practice.
Originalism is an enormously popular—and equally criticized—theory of constitutional interpretation. As Elena Kagan stated at her confirmation hearing, “We are all originalists.”. The primary point of this book is an examination of the degree to which originalism influences the Court’s decisions.
He finds that the justices all appear to fit originalist sources to the support of their preferred resolution of cases and originalism cannot therefore be judged to have had an actual constraining effect in practice.