Does the 5th Amendment have a Privileges or Immunities Clause?

September 21st, 2010

In Bolling v. Sharpe the Supreme Court read an equal protection clause into the 5th amendment. I wonder if the federal government is forbidden from abridging the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States. If so, which privileges or immunities would those be, from an originalism at the right time perspective–those of 1791 when the 5th amendment was ratified, or those from 1868 when the 14th Amendment was ratified. And if the 5th amendment also has a privileges or immunities clause, then could DC v. Heller have been decided, perhaps only by Justice Thomas, by relying on P or I, and ignoring the second amendment?