Why You Should Read My Book Anyhow: A Reply to Trevor Morrison

Abstract:     
In his review of my book, "Restoring the Lost Constitution: The Presumption of Liberty," Tevor Morrison takes issue with (1) the relationship I describe between constitutional legitimacy and constitutional method, (2) my particular defense of originalism, (3) the operation of my proposed construction of the Constitution - The Presumption of Liberty - and (4) my interpretation of Lawrence v. Texas.

In this reply I defend the fact that I hold a conception of constitutional liberty at partial variance from that of the Founders, the reasonableness and limits of originalist interpretation, the conception of the police power identified in "Restoring the Lost Constitution," and my reading of Lawrence v. Texas. Because Professor Morrison's objections are not atypical of those I have heard from others, I hope that reading my reply will induce skeptics of my approach to read my book anyway.

Keywords: presumption of liberty, constitutional legitimacy, constitutional method, originalism, constitutional liberty

JEL Classifications: K1, K10, K40, K19

Accepted Paper Series