Federalism and the Supreme Court McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

1. Federalism and the Supreme CourtMcCulloch v. Maryland (1819)

2. Stretching federal power • John Marshall, the Federalist Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, wrote the opinion in McCulloch v. Maryland. • He addressed two questions: "Does Congress have the authority to charter the bank?" and "Does the state of Maryland have the power to tax the bank?" • In a positive answer to the first question, Marshall argued that the necessary and proper clause of the Constitution, also known as the "elastic clause," implied that Congress could charter a national bank in the exercise of its explicit power to regulate interstate commerce and coin and regulate money. • In response to the second question, Marshall affirmed that "the power to tax is the power to destroy," and that allowing the state to tax the national bank would therefore violate the supremacy clause (Article VI)of the Constitution. By ruling against the state of Maryland, the Marshall Court greatly expanded the power of the national government to implement Hamilton's economic vision.

3. Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)Getting steamed up over commerce... • This case disputed who had exclusive rights to control ferry operations on the Hudson River between NY and NJ. • The state of New York had granted an exclusive license to Aaron Ogden to operate a ferry on the Hudson. • However, Congress had licensed Thomas Gibbons to operate on the Hudson under a 1793 act dealing with vessels "employed in the coasting trade and fisheries." The conflict between the two steamboat operators -- one licensed by New York and the other by Congress -- ended up before the Supreme Court. • Marshall declared that the ferry was engaged in interstate commerce, and it was therefore under the jurisdiction of the national government. The scope of what constitutes interstate commerce was broadly defined, and Marshall asserted that Congress had full power to regulate any activity that fell within this definition. At the same time, Marshall concluded that matters of "purely internal" commerce were the exclusive province of the states- thus introducing the concept of dual federalism.

4. Dartmouth College Case Trustees of Dartmouth College v. Woodward, 17 U.S. (4 Wheat.) 518 (1819), was a landmark United States Supreme Court case dealing with the application of the Contract Clause of the United States Constitution to private corporations. The case arose when the president of Dartmouth College was deposed by its trustees, leading to the New Hampshire legislature attempting to force the college to become a public institution and thereby place the ability to appoint trustees in the hands of the governor. The Supreme Court upheld the sanctity of the original charter of the college, which pre-dated the creation of the State. The decision settled the nature of public versus private charters and resulted in the rise of the American business corporation.