But Strand doesn’t appear to comprehend Scalia’s reasons for being an originalist. The character Scalia states that he is an originalist because the Constitution was made by a group of brilliant, never-to-be-replicated men. The real Justice Scalia argues that following original meaning promotes clear rules and limits judicial discretion. Strand is no Tom Stoppard, who catches the subtleties of his protagonist’s ideas and makes them sound even more eloquent than their historical expressions. Strand has written an intellectual ghost story, in which shadows of ideas fret their minutes on the stage.

The play also assaults the character of conservatives. Brad, a buffoonish member of the Federalist Society, turns up to assist Cat with research on the pending case regarding the Defense of Marriage Act. Since Brad is not a law clerk, he would never be allowed to join deliberations on a case. When Brad loses a low-level argument with Cat, he responds by throwing a pizza at her, and they proceed to have a food fight. He then leaks Cat’s sexual preferences to Politico in hopes of embarrassing her into resigning.

Read the article “The Originalist: Play Misunderstands Scalia and Smears Conservatives” on city-journal.org.