As The Roberts Court Turns 20, The Originalist Revolution Turns 40

I published a new Op-Ed wit my Heritage Guide co-editor John Malcolm in the Washington Times. We explain how the originalist revolution began in the late 1980s, even if it would have been difficult to discern at the time.

Here is the opening:

As they celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence next year, many Americans will remember fondly the patriotism and pageantry of the 1976 bicentennial. Few people were even aware of the bicentennial of 1987, the 200th anniversary of the signing of the Constitution.

Yet by the end of President Reagan’s administration, the originalist revolution was underway. Indeed, with the benefit of hindsight, the preceding three years changed the course of the Constitution.

First, in 1985, Attorney General Edwin Meese III battled Justice William J. Brennan in a public debate about originalism. Second, in 1986, Reagan, after Meese’s advice, elevated William H. Rehnquist to chief justice and nominated Antonin Scalia to the high court. Third, in 1987, though Judge Robert Bork’s nomination was unfairly blocked, his unapologetic embrace of originalism set the template for future nominees.

The Roberts court turns 20 this year, but we should proudly celebrate the fourth decade of the originalist revolution.

And from the conclusion:

As the court continues to decide cases consistent with original meaning and reject precedents made up by legal activists in robes, we should be thankful for the wisdom of these four jurists. In the new edition of the Heritage Guide to the Constitution, which we co-edited, Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. wrote, “If we can envision a Mt. Rushmore of originalism, the three visages we would see carved in stone are those of Robert Bork, Edwin Meese III and Antonin Scalia.”

We would respectfully add one more visage to the mountain: Rehnquist. In the mere span of three years, these four individuals set the Constitution on a course correction. In 2037, on the Constitution’s 250th anniversary, there will be a lot more to celebrate.

The Heritage Guide to the Constitution will ship next week. In many regards, this book is a testament to the originalist revolution.

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