Originalism in American Law and Politics

Johnathan O'Neill is an assistant professor of history at Georgia Southern University.

• PrefaceIntroduction1. From Textual Originalism to Modern Judicial Power2. Modern Judicial Power and the Process-Restraint Tradition3. The Return of Originalist Analysis in the Warren Court Era4. At the Crossroads: The Originalist Idea in Post–Warren Court Politics and Jurisprudence5. Raoul Berger and the Restoration of Originalism6. Originalism in the Era of Ronald Reagan7. Robert Bork and the Trial of Originalism8. Originalism in the 1990s: The Transformation of Academic Theory and the Limitations of PracticeNotesIndex

Everything a work of this kind should be. It is comprehensive in its coverage, scrupulously fair to all contending parties, and engagingly argumentative. -- Michael M. Uhlmann Claremont Review of Books 2006 This book will undoubtedly be the essential reference on the history of originalism, and it will be an important building block toward the history of the conservative legal movement and the conservative intellectual movement. -- Keith E. Whittington American Historical Review 2006 O'Neill has provided a rich and compelling account. -- Charles A. Lofgren Journal of American History 2006 Offers a thoughtful historical treatment of originalism within the United States. -- Wayne D. Moore Law and History Review 2007 The work is comprehensive in its coverage, fair to all the contending parties, and argumentative in the best sense of the word... Recommended. Choice 2008 Excellent book... It would be nice to see the return of constitutional history to History proper. And O'Neill has provided a ready vehicle for just such a return. -- George Thomas Law and Politics Book Review 2008 Interesting. -- Dennis J. Golford American Journal of Legal History 2006