Gregory Sullivan writes at The Public Discourse that "in a series of recent cases, the Supreme Court’s conservative justices have abandoned judicial restraint":

As expected, the U.S. Supreme Court nationalized the right to bear arms in the recent case McDonald v. City of Chicago. They did this by “incorporating” the Second Amendment—that is, by requiring the states to abide by the restrictions in the Second Amendment that originally bound only the federal government.

Although gun-rights enthusiasts are understandably elated by this result, anyone who views original understanding in constitutional interpretation and modesty in the exercise of judicial power as quintessential judicial virtues must be deeply troubled. The Court’s plurality opinion, written by Justice Alito, eschews original understanding and reflects a lack of fidelity to text. The concurrence by Justice Thomas illustrates the peril of jurists misconstruing complex historical materials.

[Read the rest here.]