220-506: John Marshall (September 24, 1755 – July 6, 1835) was an American statesman, lawyer, and Founding Father who served as the fourth chief justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longest serving justice in the history of the U.S. Supreme Court , and he is widely regarded as one of the most influential justices ever to serve. Prior to joining
440-527: A federal issue was involved. Marshall recused himself from the case because it stemmed from a dispute over Lord Fairfax's former lands, which Marshall had a financial interest in. In Dartmouth College v. Woodward , the Court held that the protections of the Contract Clause apply to private corporations . In Ogden v. Saunders , Marshall dissented in part and "assented" in part, and the Court upheld
660-523: A 1902 celebration of Washington's Birthday in Brooklyn , James M. Beck , a constitutional lawyer and later a U.S. congressman , delivered an address, "Founders of the Republic", in which he connected the concepts of founders and fathers, saying: "It is well for us to remember certain human aspects of the founders of the republic. Let me first refer to the fact that these fathers of the republic were for
880-405: A 5-to-2 majority on the Court, but Marshall retained ideological and personal leadership of the Court. Marshall regularly curbed his own viewpoints, preferring to arrive at decisions by consensus. Only once did he find himself on the losing side in a constitutional case. In that case— Ogden v. Saunders in 1827—Marshall set forth his general principles of constitutional interpretation: To say that
1100-714: A Virginian, but an American!". The delegates then began with a discussion of the Suffolk Resolves , which had just been approved at a town meeting in Milton, Massachusetts . Joseph Warren, chairman of the Resolves drafting committee, had dispatched Paul Revere to deliver signed copies to the Congress in Philadelphia. The Resolves called for the ouster of British officials, a trade embargo of British goods, and
1320-559: A begrudging 34–32 vote. The Constitution officially took effect on March 4, 1789 (235 years ago) ( 1789-03-04 ) , when the House and Senate met for their first sessions. On April 30, Washington was sworn in as the nation's first president. Ten amendments, known collectively as the United States Bill of Rights , were ratified on December 15, 1791. Because the delegates were sworn to secrecy, Madison's notes on
1540-801: A case involving the validity of a Virginia law that provided for the confiscation of debts owed to British subjects. Marshall argued that the law was a legitimate exercise of the state's power, but the Supreme Court ruled against him, holding that the Treaty of Paris in combination with the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution required the collection, rather than confiscation, of such debts. According to biographer Henry Flanders, Marshall's argument in Ware v. Hylton "elicited great admiration at
1760-538: A committee to draft rules for governing the military, thus establishing the Continental Army . The next day, Samuel and John Adams nominated Washington as commander-in-chief, a motion that was unanimously approved. Two days later, on June 17, the militias clashed with British forces at Bunker Hill , a victory for Britain but a costly one. The Congress's actions came despite the divide between conservatives who still hoped for reconciliation with England and at
1980-473: A connection to interstate commerce or to commercial activity. Once again, the Court stated it was presented with a congressional attempt to criminalize traditional local criminal conduct. As in Lopez , it could not be argued that state regulation alone would be ineffective to protect the aggregate effects of local violence. The Court explained that in both Lopez and Morrison , "the noneconomic, criminal nature of
2200-505: A court order. Historians mostly agree that the framers of the Constitution did plan for the Supreme Court to have some sort of judicial review, but Marshall made their goals operational. Though many Democratic-Republicans expected a constitutional crisis to arise after the Supreme Court asserted its power of judicial review, the Court upheld the repeal of the Midnight Judges Act in the 1803 case of Stuart v. Laird . In 1804,
2420-470: A cross-section of 18th-century American leadership. The vast majority were well-educated and prosperous, and all were prominent in their respective states with over 70 percent (40 delegates) serving in the Congress when the convention was proposed. Many delegates were late to arrive, and after eleven days' delay, a quorum was finally present on May 25 to elect Washington, the nation's most trusted figure, as convention president. Four days later, on May 29,
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#17327647375942640-632: A federal court order. Congress established a lottery in the District of Columbia in 1812, and in 1820 two individuals were convicted in Virginia for violating a state law that prohibited selling out-of-state lottery tickets. The defendants, Philip and Mendes Cohen, appealed to the Supreme Court. The Court's subsequent decision in the 1821 case of Cohens v. Virginia established that the Supreme Court could hear appeals from state courts in criminal lawsuits. The Court held that, because Virginia had brought
2860-535: A federal law regarding marijuana . The Court found the federal law valid although the marijuana in question had been grown and consumed within a single state and had never entered interstate commerce. The court held Congress may regulate an intrastate economic good as part of a complete scheme of legislation designed to regulate interstate commerce. Since the Rehnquist Court, the Tenth Amendment to
3080-416: A federal license to operate steamboats in the waters of any state. In response, Ogden won a judgment in state court that ordered Gibbons to cease operations in the state. Gibbons appealed to the Supreme Court, which heard the case of Gibbons v. Ogden in 1824. Representing Gibbons, Congressman Daniel Webster and Attorney General William Wirt (acting in a non-governmental capacity) argued that Congress had
3300-405: A judiciary. The lower house was to be elected by the people, with seats apportioned by state population. The upper house would be chosen by the lower house from delegates nominated by state legislatures. The executive, who would have veto power over legislation, would be elected by the Congress, which could overrule state laws. While the plan exceeded the convention's objective of merely amending
3520-643: A new era of federal regulation under the commerce power," beginning with the enactment of the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887 and the Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890. The Commerce Clause represents one of the most fundamental powers delegated to the Congress by the founders. The outer limits of the Interstate Commerce Clause power have been the subject of long, intense political controversy. Interpretation of
3740-673: A new form in 1773 with Parliament's adoption of the Tea Act . The new tea tax, along with stricter customs enforcement, was not well-received across the colonies, particularly in Massachusetts. On December 16, 1773, 150 colonists disguised as Mohawk Indians boarded ships in Boston and dumped 342 chests of tea into the city's harbor , a protest that came to be known as the Boston Tea Party . Orchestrated by Samuel Adams and
3960-503: A new rule for what was an acceptable use of congressional power under the Commerce Clause: Channels of commerce represent a broad congressional power that directly regulates the movement of goods and people across state lines. Importantly, the Court has never required a nexus (causal link) between a state border crossing and the engagement in an activity prohibited by Congress. In United States v. Sullivan (1948),
4180-572: A now-seemingly cruel choice of accepting manumission on the condition of emigrating to another state or to Africa (at age 78 and leaving his still-enslaved daughter Agnes) or choosing his master/mistress from among Marshall's children. Early in his career, during the 1790s, Marshall represented slaves pro bono in a few cases, often trying to win the freedom of mixed-race individuals. In possibly his most famous anti-slavery case, Marshall represented Robert Pleasants , who sought to carry out his father's will and emancipate about ninety slaves; Marshall won
4400-434: A peacetime army of 2600 men. He also favored the creation of a navy that could repel any European intruders. He approached Henry Knox, who accompanied Washington during most of his campaigns, with the prospect of becoming the future Secretary of War. After Washington's final victory at the surrender at Yorktown on October 19, 1781, more than a year passed before official negotiations for peace commenced. The Treaty of Paris
4620-647: A resolution demanding that the administration reveal the contents of the correspondence. A public outcry ensued when the Adams administration revealed that Talleyrand's agents had demanded bribes; the incident became known as the XYZ Affair . In July 1798, shortly after Marshall's return, Congress imposed an embargo in France, marking the start of an undeclared naval war known as the Quasi-War . Marshall supported most of
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#17327647375944840-435: A single vote. Under this rule, it turned out that neither party had a majority because some states had split delegations. Over the course of seven days, February 11–17, 1801, the House cast a total of 35 ballots, with Jefferson receiving the votes of eight state delegations each time, one short of the necessary majority of nine. On February 17, on the 36th ballot, Jefferson was elected as president. Burr became vice president. Had
5060-464: A speculative land company, which then resold much of that land to other speculators, termed "New Yazooists." After a public outcry over the sale, which was achieved through bribery, Georgia rescinded the sale and offered to refund the original purchase price to the New Yazooists. Many of the New Yazooists had paid far more than the original purchase price, and they rejected Georgia's revocation of
5280-505: A state law that allowed individuals to file bankruptcy . In his separate opinion, Marshall argued that the state bankruptcy law violated the Contract Clause. In Barron v. Baltimore , the Court held that the Bill of Rights was intended to apply only to the federal government, and not to the states. The courts have since incorporated most of the Bill of Rights with respect to the states through
5500-613: A state of pupilage. Their relation to the United States resembles that of a ward to his guardian. As explained in United States v. Lopez , 514 U.S. 549 (1995), "For nearly a century thereafter [that is, after Gibbons ], the Court's Commerce Clause decisions dealt but rarely with the extent of Congress' power, and almost entirely with the Commerce Clause as a limit on state legislation that discriminated against interstate commerce." Under this line of precedent,
5720-564: A strong executive, and a standing military. In 1795, Washington asked Marshall to accept appointment as the United States Attorney General , but Marshall again declined the offer. He did, however, serve in a variety of roles for the state of Virginia during the 1790s, at one point acting as the state's interim Attorney General. In 1796, Marshall appeared before the Supreme Court of the United States in Ware v. Hylton ,
5940-559: A substantial way interfere with or obstruct the exercise of the granted power. In Wickard v. Filburn (1942), the Court upheld the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938 , which sought to stabilize wide fluctuations in the market price for wheat. The Court found that Congress could apply national quotas to wheat grown on one's own land for one's own consumption because the total of such local production and consumption could potentially be sufficiently large as to affect
6160-492: A three-member commission to France that also included Charles Cotesworth Pinckney and Elbridge Gerry . The three envoys arrived in France in October 1797, but were granted only a fifteen-minute meeting with French Foreign Minister Talleyrand . After that meeting, the diplomats were met by three of Talleyrand's agents who refused to conduct diplomatic negotiations unless the United States paid enormous bribes to Talleyrand and to
6380-487: A two-room log cabin, which he shared with his parents and several siblings; Marshall was the oldest of 15 siblings. One of his younger brothers, James Markham Marshall , would briefly serve as a federal judge. Marshall was a first cousin of U.S. Senator (Ky) Humphrey Marshall and first cousin, three times removed, of General of the Army George C. Marshall . He was also a distant cousin of Thomas Jefferson . From
6600-468: A voluntary cession to our government; yet it may well be doubted whether those tribes which reside within the acknowledged boundaries of the United States can, with strict accuracy, be denominated foreign nations. They may, more correctly be denominated domestic dependent nations. They occupy a territory to which we assert a title independent of their will, which must take effect in point of possession when their right of possession ceases. Meanwhile, they are in
6820-683: A wide array of domestic responsibilities, including the deliverance of commissions of federal appointments and supervision of the construction of Washington, D.C. In October 1800, the United States and France agreed to the Convention of 1800 , which ended the Quasi-War and reestablished commercial relations with France. With the Federalists divided between Hamilton and Adams, the Democratic-Republicans emerged victorious in
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7040-432: A young age, Marshall was noted for his good humor and black eyes, which were "strong and penetrating, beaming with intelligence and good nature". With the exception of one year of formal schooling, during which time he befriended future president James Monroe , Marshall did not receive a formal education. Encouraged by his parents, the young Marshall read widely, including such works as William Blackstone 's Commentaries on
7260-408: Is all that can be necessary. While Marshall was attentive when listening to oral arguments and often persuaded other justices to adopt his interpretation of the law, he was not widely read in the law, and seldom cited precedents. After the Court came to a decision, he would usually write it up himself. Often he asked Justice Joseph Story , a renowned legal scholar and longtime friend of Marshall, to do
7480-409: Is not an essential part of a larger regulation of economic activity, in which the regulatory scheme could be undercut unless the intrastate activity were regulated. It cannot, therefore, be sustained under our cases upholding regulations of activities that arise out of or are connected with a commercial transaction, which viewed in the aggregate, substantially affects interstate commerce. The opinion set
7700-601: Is not an invasion of any private property rights in the stream or the lands underlying it, for the damage sustained does not result from taking property from riparian owners within the meaning of the Fifth Amendment but from the lawful exercise of a power to which the interests of riparian owners have always been subject. United States v. Chicago, M., St. P. & P. R. Co. , 312 U.S. 592, 596–597 (1941); Gibson v. United States , 166 U.S. 269, 275–276 (1897). Thus, without being constitutionally obligated to pay compensation,
7920-769: Is often expanded to include the signers of the Declaration of Independence and individuals who later approved the U.S. Constitution . Some scholars regard all delegates to the Constitutional Convention as Founding Fathers whether they approved the Constitution or not. In addition, some historians include signers of the Articles of Confederation , which was adopted in 1781 as the nation's first constitution. Historians have come to recognize others as founders, such as Revolutionary War military leaders as well as participants in developments leading up to
8140-628: Is substantially diminished. Some scholars, such as Robert H. Bork and Daniel E. Troy, argue that prior to 1887, the Commerce Clause was rarely invoked by Congress and so a broad interpretation of the word "commerce" was clearly never intended by the Founding Fathers. In support of that claim, they argue that the word "commerce," as used in the Constitutional Convention and the Federalist Papers , can be substituted with either "trade" or "exchange" interchangeably and still preserve
8360-483: The 1832 presidential election , and one of the presidential candidates, William Wirt, served as the attorney for the missionaries. On March 3, 1832, Marshall delivered the opinion of the Court in the case of Worcester v. Georgia . The Court's holding overturned the conviction and the state law, holding that the state of Georgia had improperly exercised control over the Cherokee. It is often reported that in response to
8580-632: The Battles of Lexington and Concord in 1775. George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River was a major American victory over Hessian forces at the Battle of Trenton and greatly boosted American morale. The Battle of Saratoga and the Siege of Yorktown , which primarily ended the fighting between American and British, were also pivotal events during the war. The 1783 Treaty of Paris marked
8800-518: The Connecticut (or Great) Compromise . Sherman's proposal called for a House of Representatives elected proportionally and a Senate where all states would have the same number of seats. On July 16, the compromise was approved by the narrowest of margins, 5 states to 4. The proceedings left most delegates with reservations. Several went home early in protest, believing the convention was overstepping its authority. Others were concerned about
9020-457: The Constitutional Convention are referred to as framers. Of these, the 16 listed below did not sign the document. Three refused, while the remainder left early, either in protest of the proceedings or for personal reasons. Nevertheless, some sources regard all framers as founders, including those who did not sign: (*) Randolph, Mason, and Gerry were the only three present at the Constitution's adoption who refused to sign. In addition to
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9240-630: The Continental Army . By July of 1778, Marshall had become a captain in the Continental Army. During the American Revolutionary War , he served in several battles, including the Battle of Brandywine , and endured the winter at Valley Forge . After he was furloughed in 1780, Marshall began attending the College of William and Mary . Marshall read law under the famous Chancellor George Wythe at William and Mary, and he
9460-537: The Council of State , becoming the youngest individual up to that point to serve on the council. In 1785, Marshall took up the additional office of Recorder of the Richmond City Hustings Court. Meanwhile, Marshall sought to build up his own legal practice, a difficult proposition during a time of economic recession. In 1786, he purchased the law practice of his cousin, Edmund Randolph , after
9680-651: The Declaration of Independence . It was presented to the Congress by the Committee on June 28, and after much debate and editing of the document, on July 2, 1776, Congress passed the Lee Resolution , which declared the United Colonies independent from Great Britain. Two days later, on July 4, the Declaration of Independence was adopted. The name "United States of America", which first appeared in
9900-629: The Democratic-Republican Party emerged as the country was polarized by issues such as the French Revolutionary Wars and the power of the presidency and the federal government. Marshall aligned with the Federalists, and at Alexander Hamilton 's request, he organized a Federalist movement in Virginia to counter the influence of Thomas Jefferson 's Democratic-Republicans. Like most other Federalists, Marshall favored neutrality in foreign affairs, high tariffs ,
10120-639: The Fourteenth Amendment , which was ratified decades after Marshall's death. After his appointment to the Supreme Court, Marshall began working on a biography of George Washington. He did so at the request of his close friend, Associate Justice Bushrod Washington , who had inherited the papers of his uncle. Marshall's The Life of George Washington , the first biography about a U.S. president ever published, spanned five volumes and just under one thousand pages. The first two volumes, published in 1804, were poorly received and seen by many as an attack on
10340-547: The Rehnquist Court 's revived federalism , as evident in its 5–4 decision in United States v. Lopez , enforced strict limits to congressional power under the Commerce Clause. In Lopez , the Court struck down the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990 . It was the first time in almost 60 years that the Court had struck down a federal law for exceeding the limits of the Commerce Clause. In the case,
10560-501: The Second Continental Congress with drafting the Declaration of Independence . Franklin, Adams, and John Jay negotiated the 1783 Treaty of Paris , which established American independence and brought an end to the American Revolutionary War . The constitutions drafted by Jay and Adams for their respective states of New York (1777) and Massachusetts (1780) proved influential in the language used in developing
10780-735: The United States Declaration of Independence , the Articles of Confederation , the United States Constitution and other founding documents; it can also be applied to military personnel who fought in the American Revolution. The single person most identified as "Father" of the United States is George Washington , a general in the American Revolution and the 1st President of the United States. In 1973, historian Richard B. Morris identified seven figures as key founders, based on what he called
11000-519: The Worcester decision President Andrew Jackson declared "John Marshall has made his decision; now let him enforce it!" More reputable sources recognize this as a false quotation. Regardless, Jackson refused to enforce the decision, and Georgia refused to release the missionaries. The situation was finally resolved when the Jackson administration privately convinced Governor Wilson Lumpkin to pardon
11220-470: The XYZ Affair , the government of France refused to open negotiations unless the United States agreed to pay bribes. Upon his return from France, he led the Federalist Party in Congress. He was appointed secretary of state in 1800 after a cabinet shake-up, becoming an important figure in the Adams administration. In 1801, Adams appointed Marshall to the Supreme Court. Marshall quickly emerged as
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#173276473759411440-492: The presidential election of 1800 . However, Thomas Jefferson and Aaron Burr both received 73 electoral votes , throwing the election to the Federalist-controlled House of Representatives. Hamilton asked Marshall to support Jefferson, but Marshall declined to support either candidate. In the contingent election held to decide whether Jefferson or Burr would become president, each state delegation had
11660-541: The "triple tests" of leadership, longevity, and statesmanship: John Adams , Benjamin Franklin , Alexander Hamilton , John Jay , Thomas Jefferson , James Madison , and Washington. Most of the Founding Fathers were of English ancestry, though many had family roots extending across various regions of the British Isles , including Scotland , Wales , and Ireland . Additionally, some traced their lineage back to
11880-537: The 1780s was a confederation of sovereign states with a weak national government that had little or no effective power to impose tariffs, regulate interstate commerce, or enforce laws. Influenced by Shays' Rebellion and the powerlessness of the Congress of the Confederation , Marshall came to believe in the necessity of a new governing structure that would replace the powerless national government established by
12100-577: The American people in general." In Thomas Jefferson 's second inaugural address in 1805 , he referred to those who first came to the New World as "forefathers". At his 1825 inauguration , John Quincy Adams called the U.S. Constitution "the work of our forefathers" and expressed his gratitude to "founders of the Union". In July of the following year, John Quincy Adams , in an executive order upon
12320-552: The Articles of Confederation. He strongly favored ratification of the new constitution proposed by the Philadelphia Convention , as it provided for a much stronger federal government. Marshall was elected to the 1788 Virginia Ratifying Convention , where he worked with James Madison to convince other delegates to ratify the new constitution. After a long debate, proponents of ratification emerged victorious, as
12540-401: The Articles, most delegates were willing to abandon their original mandate in favor of crafting a new form of government. Discussions of the Virginia resolutions continued into mid-June, when William Paterson of New Jersey presented an alternative proposal. The New Jersey Plan retained most of the Articles' provisions, including a one-house legislature and equal power for the states. One of
12760-580: The Boston Committee of Correspondence , the protest was viewed as treasonous by British authorities. In response, Parliament passed the Coercive or Intolerable Acts , a series of punitive laws that closed Boston's port and placed the colony under direct control of the British government. These measures stirred unrest throughout the colonies, which felt Parliament had overreached its authority and
12980-404: The Cherokee were arrested by the state of Georgia. The State did so on the basis of an 1830 state law that prohibited white men from living on Native American land without a state license. Among those arrested was Samuel Worcester , who, after being convicted of violating the state law, challenged the constitutionality of the law in federal court. The arrest of the missionaries became a key issue in
13200-489: The Cherokee. The Supreme Court heard the resulting case of Cherokee Nation v. Georgia in 1831. Writing for the Court, Marshall held that Native American tribes constituted "domestic dependent nations," a new legal status, but he dismissed the case on the basis of standing . At roughly the same time that the Supreme Court issued its decision in Cherokee Nation v. Georgia , a group of white missionaries living with
13420-413: The Commerce Clause. Heart of Atlanta Motel v. United States , 379 U.S. 241 (1964), ruled that Congress could regulate a business that served mostly interstate travelers. Daniel v. Paul , 395 U.S. 298 (1969), ruled that the federal government could regulate a recreational facility because three of the four items sold at its snack bar were purchased from outside the state. Starting in 1995,
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#173276473759413640-555: The Congress of the Confederation, which forwarded the document to the states for ratification. In November, Pennsylvania's legislature convened the first of the conventions. Before it could vote, Delaware became the first state to ratify, approving the Constitution on December 7 by a 30–0 margin. Pennsylvania followed suit five days later, splitting its vote 46–23. Despite unanimous votes in New Jersey and Georgia, several key states appeared to be leaning against ratification because of
13860-559: The Congress would take over the army being formed in Boston. In answer to the first question, on June 9 the colony's leaders were directed to choose a council to govern within the spirit of the colony's charter. As for the second, Congress spent several days discussing plans for guiding the forces of all thirteen colonies. Finally, on June 14 Congress approved provisioning the New England militias, agreed to send ten companies of riflemen from other colonies as reinforcements, and appointed
14080-426: The Constitution has once again played an integral part in the Court's view of the Commerce Clause. The Tenth Amendment states that the federal government has the powers specifically delegated to it by the Constitution and that other powers are reserved to the states or to the people. The Commerce Clause is an important source of those powers delegated to Congress and so its interpretation is very important in determining
14300-444: The Constitution. Marshall's holding avoided direct conflict with the executive branch, which was led by Democratic-Republican President Thomas Jefferson . By establishing the principle of judicial review while avoiding an inter-branch confrontation, Marshall helped implement the principle of separation of powers and cement the position of the American judiciary as an independent and co-equal branch of government. After 1803, many of
14520-568: The Court excluded services not related to production, such as live entertainment, from the definition of commerce: That to which it is incident, the exhibition, although made for money, would not be called trade of commerce in the commonly accepted use of those words. As it is put by defendant, personal effort not related to production is not a subject of commerce. In 1935, the Supreme Court decision in Schecter Poultry Corporation v. United States invalidated regulations of
14740-452: The Court held that Section 301k of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which prohibited the misbranding of pharmaceutical drugs transported in interstate commerce, did not exceed the congressional commerce power because Congress has the power to “keep the channels of such commerce free from the transportation of illicit or harmful articles.” Topics in this category include mailing or shipping in interstate commerce, prohibiting crimes where
14960-426: The Court held that certain categories of activity such as "exhibitions", "production", "manufacturing", and "mining" were within the province of state governments, and thus were beyond the power of Congress under the Commerce Clause. When Congress began to engage in economic regulation on a national scale, the Court's dormant Commerce Clause decisions influenced its approach to Congressional regulation. In this context,
15180-431: The Court ruled that the clause covered meatpackers; although their activity was geographically "local", they had an important effect on the "current of commerce", and thus could be regulated under the Commerce Clause. The Court's decision halted price fixing. Stafford v. Wallace , 258 U.S. 495 (1922), upheld a federal law (the Packers and Stockyards Act ) regulating the Chicago meatpacking industry, because
15400-624: The Court took a formalistic approach, which distinguished between services and commerce, manufacturing and commerce, direct and indirect effects on commerce, and local and national activities. See concurring opinion of Justice Kennedy in United States v. Lopez . ("One approach the Court used to inquire into the lawfulness of state authority was to draw content-based or subject-matter distinctions, thus defining by semantic or formalistic categories those activities that were commerce and those that were not.") The Dormant Commerce Clause formalisms spilled over into its Article I jurisprudence. While Congress had
15620-414: The Court upheld federal price regulation of intrastate milk commerce: The commerce power is not confined in its exercise to the regulation of commerce among the states. It extends to those activities intrastate which so affect interstate commerce, or the exertion of the power of Congress over it, as to make regulation of them appropriate means to the attainment of a legitimate end, the effective execution of
15840-407: The Court was confronted with the conviction of a high school student for carrying a concealed handgun into school in violation of the act. In striking down the federal law, the majority opinion explained: [The Gun-Free School Zones Act] is a criminal statute that by its terms has nothing to do with "commerce" or any sort of economic enterprise, however broadly one might define those terms. [The act]
16060-619: The Declaration, was formally approved by the Congress on September 9, 1776. In an effort to get this important document promptly into the public realm John Hancock , president of the Second Continental Congress, commissioned John Dunlap , editor and printer of the Pennsylvania Packet , to print 200 broadside copies of the Declaration, which came to be known as the Dunlap broadsides . Printing commenced
16280-665: The Democratic-Republican Party. Nonetheless, historians have often praised the accuracy and well-reasoned judgments of Marshall's biography, while noting his frequent paraphrases of published sources such as William Gordon's 1801 history of the Revolution and the British Annual Register. After completing the revision to his biography of Washington, Marshall prepared an abridgment. In 1833 he wrote, "I have at length completed an abridgment of
16500-554: The Democratic-Republicans after 1800. Soon after becoming chief justice, Marshall changed the manner in which the Supreme Court announced its decisions. Previously, each Justice would author a separate opinion (known as a seriatim opinion) as was done in the Virginia Supreme Court of his day and is still done today in the United Kingdom and Australia . Under Marshall, however, the Supreme Court adopted
16720-573: The First Congress with many of the same delegates in attendance. Among the new arrivals were Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, John Hancock of Massachusetts, and in June, Thomas Jefferson of Virginia. Hancock was elected president two weeks into the session when Peyton Randolph was recalled to Virginia to preside over the House of Burgesses as speaker, and Jefferson was named to replace him in
16940-556: The Framers' response to the central problem giving rise to the Constitution itself: the absence of any federal commerce power under the Articles of Confederation. For the first century of our history, the primary use of the Clause was to preclude the kind of discriminatory state legislation that had once been permissible. Then, in response to rapid industrial development and an increasingly interdependent national economy, Congress "ushered in
17160-507: The French and was almost entirely responsible for securing an alliance with them a few months after the start of the war, was greeted with high honors from the French council, while the others received due accommodations but were generally considered to be amateur negotiators. Communications between Britain and France were largely effected through Franklin and Lord Shelburne who was on good terms with Franklin. Franklin, Adams and Jay understood
17380-616: The Georgia criminal statute that prohibited non- Native Americans from being present on Native American lands without a license from the state was unconstitutional. John Marshall died of natural causes in 1835, and Andrew Jackson appointed Roger Taney as his successor. Marshall was born on September 24, 1755, in a log cabin in Germantown , a rural community on the Virginia frontier, near present-day Midland , Fauquier County . In
17600-679: The House of Representatives impeached Associate Justice Samuel Chase , alleging that he had shown political bias in his judicial conduct. Many Democratic-Republicans saw the impeachment as a way to intimidate federal judges, many of whom were members of the Federalist Party. As a witness in the Senate's impeachment trial, Marshall defended Chase's actions. In March 1805, the Senate voted to acquit Chase, as several Democratic-Republican senators joined with their Federalist colleagues in refusing to remove Chase. The acquittal helped further establish
17820-612: The Intolerable Acts, British Army commander-in-chief Lieutenant General Thomas Gage was installed as governor of Massachusetts. In January 1775, Gage's superior, Lord Dartmouth, ordered the general to arrest those responsible for the Tea Party and to seize the munitions that had been stockpiled by militia forces outside of Boston. The letter took several months to reach Gage, who acted immediately by sending out 700 army regulars . During their march to Lexington and Concord on
18040-473: The Judiciary Act of 1789 was unconstitutional, the Court held that it did not have original jurisdiction over the case even while simultaneously holding that Madison had violated the law. Marbury v. Madison was the first case in which the Supreme Court struck down a federal law as unconstitutional and it is most significant for its role in establishing the Supreme Court's power of judicial review , or
18260-581: The Laws of England and Alexander Pope 's An Essay on Man . He was also tutored by the Reverend James Thomson, a recently ordained deacon from Glasgow, Scotland , who resided with the Marshall family in return for his room and board. Marshall was especially influenced by his father, of whom he wrote, "to his care I am indebted for anything valuable which I may have acquired in my youth. He
18480-479: The Life of Washington for the use of schools. I have endeavored to compress it as much as possible. ... After striking out every thing which in my judgment could be properly excluded the volume will contain at least 400 pages." The Abridgment was not published until 1838, three years after Marshall died. In 1828, Marshall presided over a convention to promote internal improvements in Virginia. The following year, Marshall
18700-488: The President to appoint an additional Justice for each sitting Justice over age 70. Given the age of the current justices, that would allow a Supreme Court of up to 15 Justices. Roosevelt claimed that to be intended to lessen the load on the older Justices, rather than an attempt to achieve a majority that would cease to strike his New Deal acts. Ultimately, there was widespread opposition to the "court packing" plan, and in
18920-529: The Republic of France. The Americans refused to negotiate on such terms, and Marshall and Pinckney eventually decided to return to the United States. Marshall left France in April 1798 and arrived in the United States two months later, receiving a warm welcome by Federalist members of Congress. During his time in France, Marshall and the other commissioners had sent secret correspondence to Adams and Secretary of State Timothy Pickering . In April 1798, Congress passed
19140-518: The Richmond area district favored the Democratic-Republican Party, Marshall won the race, in part due to his conduct during the XYZ Affair and in part due to the support of Patrick Henry . During the campaign, Marshall declined appointment as an associate justice of the Supreme Court, and President Adams instead appointed Marshall's friend, Bushrod Washington . After winning the election, Marshall
19360-495: The Senate had confirmed their nominations. Though the position of justice of the peace was a relatively powerless and low-paying office, one individual whose commission was not delivered, William Marbury , decided to mount a legal challenge against the Jefferson administration. Seeking to have his judicial commission delivered, Marbury filed suit against the sitting Secretary of State, James Madison. The Supreme Court agreed to hear
19580-492: The Supreme Court addressed whether the Cherokee nation is a foreign state in the sense in which that term is used in the U.S. constitution. The Court provided a definition of Indian tribe that clearly made the rights of tribes far inferior to those of foreign states: Though the Indians are acknowledged to have an unquestionable, and, heretofore, unquestioned right to the lands they occupy, until that right shall be extinguished by
19800-411: The Supreme Court had been seen as a relatively insignificant institution. Most legal disputes were resolved in state, rather than federal courts. The Court had issued just 63 decisions in its first decades, few of which had made a significant impact, and it had never struck down a federal or state law. During Marshall's 34-year tenure as Chief Justice, the Supreme Court would emerge as an important force in
20020-506: The U.S. Constitution. The Federalist Papers , which advocated the ratification of the Constitution , were written by Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and Jay. George Washington was commander-in-chief of the Continental Army and later president of the Constitutional Convention . Each of these men held additional important roles in the early government of the United States. Washington, Adams, Jefferson, and Madison served as
20240-465: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected the argument that the ban on growing medical marijuana for personal use exceeded the powers of Congress under the Commerce Clause. Even if no goods were sold or transported across state lines, the Court found that there could be an indirect effect on interstate commerce and relied heavily on a New Deal case, Wickard v. Filburn , which held that the government may regulate personal cultivation and consumption of crops because
20460-840: The United States The Founding Fathers of the United States , often simply referred to as the Founding Fathers or the Founders , were a group of late-18th-century American revolutionary leaders who united the Thirteen Colonies , oversaw the War of Independence from Great Britain , established the United States of America , and crafted a framework of government for the new nation. The Founding Fathers include those who signed
20680-440: The United States from extraditing one of its citizens. His speech helped defeat a motion to censure President Adams for the extradition. In May 1800, President Adams nominated Marshall as Secretary of War , but the President quickly withdrew that nomination and instead nominated Marshall as Secretary of State. Marshall was confirmed by the Senate on May 13 and took office on June 6, 1800. Marshall's appointment as Secretary of State
20900-399: The United States may change the course of a navigable stream, South Carolina v. Georgia , 93 U.S. 4 (1876), or otherwise impair or destroy a riparian owner's access to navigable waters, Gibson v. United States , 166 U.S. 269 (1897); Scranton v. Wheeler , 179 U.S. 141 (1900); United States v. Commodore Park, Inc. , 324 U.S. 386 (1945), even though the market value of the riparian owner's land
21120-433: The Virginia delegation. After adopting the rules of debate from the previous year and reinforcing its emphasis on secrecy, the Congress turned to its foremost concern, the defense of the colonies. The provincial assembly in Massachusetts, which had declared the colony's governorship vacant, reached out to the Congress for direction on two matters: whether the assembly could assume the powers of civil government and whether
21340-451: The activity Congress is attempting to regulate has a substantial effect on interstate commerce, reviewing courts typically consider the following factors: (1) whether the regulated activity is commercial or economic in nature; (2) whether an express jurisdictional element is provided in the statute to limit its reach; (3) whether Congress made express findings about the effects of the proscribed activity on interstate commerce; and (4) whether
21560-568: The aggregate effect of individual consumption could have an indirect effect on interstate commerce. Article I, Section 8, Clause 3: [The Congress shall have Power] To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes; The significance of the Commerce Clause is described in the Supreme Court's opinion in Gonzales v. Raich , 545 U.S. 1 (2005): The Commerce Clause emerged as
21780-421: The basic theory of implied powers under a written Constitution; intended, as he said "to endure for ages to come, and, consequently, to be adapted to the various crises of human affairs ...." Marshall envisaged a federal government which, although governed by timeless principles, possessed the powers "on which the welfare of a nation essentially depends." "Let the end be legitimate," Marshall wrote, "let it be within
22000-609: The beginning of the end of Supreme Court's opposition to the New Deal, which also obviated the "court packing" scheme. In United States v. Darby Lumber Co. (1941), the Court upheld the Fair Labor Standards Act , which regulated the production of goods shipped across state lines. It stated that the Tenth Amendment "is but a truism" and was not considered to be an independent limitation on congressional power. In United States v. Wrightwood Dairy Co. (1942),
22220-493: The case in the Virginia High Court of Chancery, in an opinion written by his teacher George Wythe, but that court's holding was later restricted by the Virginia High Court of Appeals. In 1796, Marshall also personally emancipated Peter, a black man he had purchased. Furthermore, Marshall in 1822 signed an emancipation certificate for Jasper Graham, manumitted by the will of John Graham . Founding Fathers of
22440-491: The case of Marbury v. Madison in its 1803 term. Meanwhile, the Democratic-Republicans passed the Judiciary Act of 1802 , which effectively repealed the Midnight Judges Act and canceled the Supreme Court's 1802 term. They also began impeachment proceedings against federal judge John Pickering , a prominent Federalist; in response, Federalist members of Congress accused the Democratic-Republicans of trying to infringe on
22660-504: The chores of locating the precedents, saying, "There, Story; that is the law of this case; now go and find the authorities." In his role as Secretary of State in the Adams administration, Marshall had failed to deliver commissions to 42 federal justices of the peace before the end of Adams's term. After coming to power, the Jefferson administration refused to deliver about half of these outstanding commissions, effectively preventing those individuals from receiving their appointments even though
22880-600: The colonies to enforce the boycott. The Declaration and its boycott directly challenged Parliament's right to govern in the Americas, bolstering the view of King George III and his administration under Lord North that the colonies were in a state of rebellion. Lord Dartmouth , the secretary of state for the colonies who had been sympathetic to the Americans, condemned the newly established Congress for what he considered its illegal formation and actions. In tandem with
23100-523: The combination of the Constitution together with a treaty. In 1816, Congress established the Second Bank of the United States ("national bank") in order to regulate the country's money supply and provide loans to the federal government and businesses. The state of Maryland imposed a tax on the national bank, but James McCulloch, the manager of the national bank's branch in Baltimore , refused to pay
23320-426: The concerns of the French at this uncertain juncture and, using that to their advantage, in the final sessions of negotiations convinced both the French and the British that American independence was in their best interests. Under the Articles of Confederation, the Congress of the Confederation had no power to collect taxes, regulate commerce, pay the national debt, conduct diplomatic relations, or effectively manage
23540-400: The conduct at issue was central to our decision." Furthermore, the Court pointed out that neither case had "'express jurisdictional element which might limit its reach (to those instances that) have an explicit connection with or effect on interstate commerce.'" In both cases, Congress criminalized activity that was not commercial in nature without including a jurisdictional element establishing
23760-537: The context of their time. The phrase "Founding Fathers" was first used by U.S. Senator Warren G. Harding in his keynote speech at the Republican National Convention of 1916 . Harding later repeated the phrase at his March 4, 1921, inauguration . While U.S. presidents used the terms "founders" and "fathers" in their speeches throughout much of the early 20th century, it was another 60 years before Harding's phrase would be used again during
23980-464: The convention adopted a rule of secrecy, a controversial decision but a common practice that allowed delegates to speak freely. Immediately following the secrecy vote, Virginia governor Edmund Randolph introduced the Virginia Plan , fifteen resolutions written by Madison and his colleagues proposing a government of three branches: a single executive, a bicameral (two-house) legislature, and
24200-474: The convention voted 89 to 79 to ratify the constitution. After the United States ratified the Constitution, newly elected President George Washington nominated Marshall as the United States Attorney for Virginia . Though the nomination was confirmed by the Senate, Marshall declined the position, instead choosing to focus on his own law practice. In the early 1790s, the Federalist Party and
24420-503: The corresponding verb "to commerce" more broadly as "[t]o hold intercourse." The word "intercourse" also had a different and wider meaning back in 1792, compared to today. Nevertheless, in Gibbons v. Ogden (1824), the Court ruled unanimously that congressional power extends to regulation over navigable waters. Chief Justice John Marshall ruled in Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) that the power to regulate interstate commerce also included
24640-467: The court, Marshall briefly served as both the U.S. secretary of state under President John Adams , and a representative, in the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia , thereby making him one of the few Americans to have held a constitutional office in each of the three branches of the United States federal government. Marshall was born in Germantown in the Colony of Virginia in 1755. After
24860-469: The day after the Declaration was adopted. They were distributed throughout the 13 colonies/states with copies sent to General Washington and his troops at New York with a directive that it be read aloud. Copies were also sent to Britain and other points in Europe. While the colonists were fighting the British to gain independence their newly formed government, with its Articles of Confederation, were put to
25080-487: The deadlock lasted a couple weeks longer (through March 4 or beyond), Marshall, as Secretary of State, would have become acting president until a choice was made. After the election, Adams and the lame duck Congress passed what came to be known as the Midnight Judges Act . This legislation made sweeping changes to the federal judiciary, including a reduction in Supreme Court justices from six to five (upon
25300-476: The death of Associate Justice Washington in 1829, Marshall was the last remaining original member of the Marshall Court, and his influence declined as new justices joined the Court. After Jackson took office in 1829, he clashed with the Supreme Court, especially with regards to his administration's policy of Indian removal . In the 1823 case of Johnson v. McIntosh , the Marshall Court had established
25520-515: The deaths of his father John Adams and Jefferson, who died on the same day, paid tribute to them as both "Fathers" and "Founders of the Republic". These terms were used in the U.S. throughout the 19th century, from the inaugurations of Martin Van Buren and James Polk in 1837 and 1845 , to Abraham Lincoln 's Cooper Union speech in 1860 and his Gettysburg Address in 1863, and up to William McKinley 's first inauguration in 1897. At
25740-449: The delegates turned to an even more contentious issue, legislative representation. Larger states favored proportional representation based on population, while smaller states wanted each state to have the same number of legislators. By mid-July, the debates between the large-state and small-state factions had reached an impasse. With the convention on the verge of collapse, Roger Sherman of Connecticut introduced what became known as
25960-454: The doctrine of executive privilege . During the trial, Marshall ruled that much of the evidence that the government had amassed against Burr was inadmissible; biographer Joel Richard Paul states that Marshall effectively "directed the jury to acquit Burr." After Burr was acquitted, Democratic-Republicans, including President Jefferson, attacked Marshall for his role in the trial. In 1795, the state of Georgia had sold much of its western lands to
26180-537: The early Dutch settlers of New York ( New Netherland ) during the colonial era, while others were descendants of French Huguenots who settled in the colonies, escaping religious persecution in France . Historian Richard Morris' selection of seven key founders was widely accepted through the 20th century. John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin were members of the Committee of Five that were charged by
26400-576: The end of the Lochner era , the use of the Commerce Clause by Congress to authorize federal control of economic matters became effectively unlimited. The US Supreme Court restricted congressional use of the Commerce Clause somewhat with United States v. Lopez (1995). The Commerce Clause is the source of federal drug prohibition laws under the Controlled Substances Act . In a 2005 medical marijuana case, Gonzales v. Raich ,
26620-525: The end, Roosevelt abandoned it. However, in what became known as " the switch in time that saved nine ," Justice Owen Roberts , shortly after the "court packing" plan was proposed, joined the 5-4 majority opinion in West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish (1937). It narrowly upheld a Washington state minimum wage law, abandoning prior jurisprudence, and ended the Lochner era . That essentially marked
26840-461: The exclusive power to regulate commerce, while Ogden's attorneys contended that the Constitution did not prohibit states from restricting navigation. Writing for the Court, Marshall held that navigation constituted a form of commerce and thus could be regulated by Congress. Because New York's monopoly conflicted with a properly issued federal license, the Court struck down the monopoly. However, Marshall did not adopt Webster's argument that Congress had
27060-411: The federal government for the first time, and Marshall himself played a major role in shaping the nation's understanding of constitutional law. The Marshall Court would issue more than 1000 decisions, about half of which were written by Marshall himself. Marshall's leadership of the Supreme Court ensured that the federal government would exercise relatively strong powers, despite the political domination of
27280-551: The first four presidents; Adams and Jefferson were the nation's first two vice presidents; Jay was the nation's first chief justice ; Hamilton was the first secretary of the treasury ; Jefferson was the first secretary of state ; and Franklin was America's most senior diplomat from the start of the Revolutionary War through its conclusion with the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783. The list of Founding Fathers
27500-460: The formation of a militia throughout the colonies. Despite the radical nature of the resolves, on September 17 the Congress passed them in their entirety in exchange for assurances that Massachusetts' colonists would do nothing to provoke war. The delegates then approved a series of measures, including a Petition to the King in an appeal for peace and a Declaration and Resolves which introduced
27720-470: The granted power to regulate interstate commerce.... The power of Congress over interstate commerce is plenary and complete in itself, may be exercised to its utmost extent, and acknowledges no limitations other than are prescribed in the Constitution.... It follows that no form of state activity can constitutionally thwart the regulatory power granted by the commerce clause to Congress. Hence, the reach of that power extends to those intrastate activities which in
27940-775: The guidance it provided during the armed struggle. Its authority remained ill-defined, and few of its delegates realized that events would soon lead them to decide policies that ultimately established a "new power among the nations". In the process the Congress performed many experiments in government before an adequate Constitution evolved. The First Continental Congress convened at Philadelphia's Carpenter's Hall on September 5, 1774. The Congress, which had no legal authority to raise taxes or call on colonial militias, consisted of 56 delegates, including George Washington of Virginia; John Adams and Samuel Adams of Massachusetts; John Jay of New York; John Dickinson of Pennsylvania; and Roger Sherman of Connecticut. Peyton Randolph of Virginia
28160-518: The idea that it would be subject to the authority of the British Empire. By 1774, however, letters published in colonial newspapers , mostly by anonymous writers, began asserting the need for a "Congress" to represent all Americans, one that would have equal status with British authority. The Continental Congress was convened to deal with a series of pressing issues the colonies were facing with Britain. Its delegates were men considered to be
28380-456: The idea that the electoral process of representative government represents the primary limitation on the exercise of the Commerce Clause powers: The wisdom and the discretion of Congress, their identity with the people, and the influence which their constituents possess at elections, are, in this, as in many other instances, as that, for example, of declaring war, the sole restraints on which they have relied, to secure them from its abuse. They are
28600-523: The ideas of natural law and natural rights, foreshadowing some of the principles found in the Declaration of Independence and Bill of Rights . The declaration asserted the rights of colonists and outlined Parliament's abuses of power. Proposed by Richard Henry Lee , it also included a trade boycott known as the Continental Association . The Association, a crucial step toward unification, empowered committees of correspondence throughout
28820-570: The inaugural ceremonies. Ronald Reagan referred to "Founding Fathers" at both his first inauguration on January 20, 1981 , and his second on January 20, 1985 . In 1811, responding to praise for his generation, John Adams wrote to a younger Josiah Quincy III , "I ought not to object to your Reverence for your Fathers as you call them ... but to tell you a very great secret ... I have no reason to believe We were better than you are." He also wrote, "Don't call me, ... Father ... [or] Founder ... These titles belong to no man, but to
29040-431: The independence of the federal judiciary. In early February 1803, the Supreme Court held a four-day trial for the case of Marbury v. Madison , though the defendant, James Madison, refused to appear. On February 24, the Supreme Court announced its decision, which biographer Joel Richard Paul describes as "the single most significant constitutional decision issued by any court in American history." The Court held that Madison
29260-410: The independence of the federal judiciary. Relations between the Supreme Court and the executive branch improved after 1805, and several proposals to alter the Supreme Court or strip it of jurisdiction were defeated in Congress. Vice President Aaron Burr was not renominated by his party in the 1804 presidential election and his term as vice president ended in 1805. After leaving office, Burr traveled to
29480-437: The individual crossed a state line to commit the act, and explosives. The instrumentalities category allows Congress to make regulations in regards to "the safety, efficiency, and accessibility of the nationwide transportation and communications networks." It is a significant basis for congressional authority however it has not been fully occupied by Congress. The substantial impact (or substantial affect) category relates to
29700-433: The industry was part of the interstate commerce of beef from ranchers to dinner tables. The stockyards "are but a throat through which the current [of commerce] flows," Chief Justice Taft wrote, referring to the stockyards as "great national public utilities." As Justice Kennedy wrote: (in a concurring opinion to United States v. Lopez ), "Though that [formalistic] approach likely would not have survived even if confined to
29920-440: The intention of the instrument must prevail; that this intention must be collected from its words; that its words are to be understood in that sense in which they are generally used by those for whom the instrument was intended; that its provisions are neither to be restricted into insignificance, nor extended to objects not comprehended in them, nor contemplated by its framers—is to repeat what has been already said more at large, and
30140-567: The key figure on the court, due in large part to his personal influence with the other justices. Under his leadership, the court moved away from seriatim opinions, instead issuing a single majority opinion that elucidated a clear rule. The 1803 case of Marbury v. Madison presented the first major case heard by the Marshall Court . In his opinion for the court, Marshall upheld the principle of judicial review , whereby courts could strike down federal and state laws if they conflicted with
30360-460: The lack of a Bill of Rights safeguarding individual liberties. Even Madison, the Constitution's chief architect, was dissatisfied, particularly over equal representation in the Senate and the failure to grant Congress the power to veto state legislation. Misgivings aside, a final draft was approved overwhelmingly on September 17, with 11 states in favor and New York unable to vote since it had only one delegate remaining, Hamilton. Rhode Island, which
30580-518: The latter was elected Governor of Virginia. Marshall gained a reputation as a talented attorney practicing in the state capital of Richmond , and he took on a wide array of cases. He represented the heirs of Lord Fairfax in Hite v. Fairfax (1786), an important case involving a large tract of land in the Northern Neck of Virginia. Under the Articles of Confederation , the United States during
30800-412: The law came from the charismatic force of his personality and his ability to seize upon the key elements of a case and make highly persuasive arguments. As Oliver Wolcott observed when both he and Marshall served in the Adams administration, Marshall had the knack of "putting his own ideas into the minds of others, unconsciously to them". By 1811, justices appointed by a Democratic-Republican president had
31020-510: The link between the prohibited activity and the effect on interstate commerce is attenuated. Lopez was clarified by the Rehnquist Court in United States v. Morrison , 529 U.S. 598 (2000). In Morrison, the Court invalidated § 40302 of the Violence Against Women Act ("VAWA"), which created civil liability for the commission of a gender-based violent crime but without any jurisdictional requirement of
31240-544: The major decisions issued by the Marshall Court confirmed the supremacy of the federal government and the federal Constitution over the states. In Fletcher v. Peck and Dartmouth College v. Woodward , the court invalidated state actions because they violated the Contract Clause . The court's decision in McCulloch v. Maryland upheld the constitutionality of the Second Bank of the United States and established
31460-560: The meaning of those statements. They also point to James Madison 's statement in an 1828 letter that the "Constitution vests in Congress expressly... 'the power to regulate trade'." Examining contemporaneous dictionaries does not neatly resolve the matter. For instance, the 1792 edition of Samuel Johnson 's A Dictionary of the English Language defines the noun "commerce" narrowly as "[e]xchange of one thing for another; interchange of any thing; trade; traffick," but it defines
31680-787: The measures Congress adopted in the struggle against France, but he disapproved of the Alien and Sedition Acts , four separate laws designed to suppress dissent during the Quasi-War. Marshall published a letter to a local newspaper stating his belief that the laws would likely "create, unnecessarily, discontents and jealousies at a time when our very existence as a nation may depend on our union." After his return from France, Marshall wanted to resume his private practice of law, but in September 1798 former President Washington convinced him to challenge incumbent Democratic-Republican Congressman John Clopton of Virginia's 13th congressional district . Although
31900-572: The mid-1760s, the Marshalls moved northwest to the present-day site of Markham, Virginia . His parents were Thomas Marshall and Mary Randolph Keith, the granddaughter of politician Thomas Randolph of Tuckahoe and a second cousin of U.S. President Thomas Jefferson. Thomas Marshall was employed in Fauquier County as a surveyor and land agent by Lord Fairfax , which provided him with a substantial income. Nonetheless, John Marshall grew up in
32120-586: The mid-1820s, he wrote nearly every decision on slavery, creating a jurisprudence that was contemptuous of free blacks and favorable to violators of the federal ban on the African slave trade. Marshall's association with slavery began early. In 1783, his father Thomas Marshall as a wedding present gave John Marshall his first slave, Robin Spurlock, who would remain Marshall's manservant as well as run his Richmond household. Upon Marshall's death, Spurlock would receive
32340-508: The mining industry on the grounds that mining was not "commerce." In the preceding decades, the Court had struck down a laundry list of progressive legislation: minimum-wage laws, child labor laws, agricultural relief laws, and virtually every other element of the New Deal legislation that had come before it. After winning re-election in 1936 , Roosevelt proposed the Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937 to allow
32560-513: The missionaries. Marshall established the Charming Betsy principle, a rule of statutory interpretation , in the 1804 case of Murray v. The Charming Betsy . The Charming Betsy principle holds that "an act of Congress ought never to be construed to violate the law of nations if any other possible construction remains." In Martin v. Hunter's Lessee , the Supreme Court held that it had the power to hear appeals from state supreme courts when
32780-667: The morning of April 19, 1775, the British troops encountered militia forces, who had been warned the night before by Paul Revere and another messenger on horseback, William Dawes . Even though it is unknown who fired the first shot, the Revolutionary War began. On May 10, 1775, less than three weeks after the Battles at Lexington and Concord, the Second Continental Congress convened in the Pennsylvania State House . The gathering essentially reconstituted
33000-518: The most controversial decision" handed down by the Marshall Court. Southerners, including Virginia judge Spencer Roane , attacked the decision as an overreach of federal power. In a subsequent case, Osborn v. Bank of the United States , the Court ordered a state official to return seized funds to the national bank. The Osborn case established that the Eleventh Amendment does not grant state officials sovereign immunity when they resist
33220-485: The most intelligent and thoughtful among the colonialists. In the wake of the Intolerable Acts , at the hands of an unyielding British King and Parliament, the colonies were forced to choose between either totally submitting to arbitrary Parliamentary authority or resorting to unified armed resistance. The new Congress functioned as the directing body in declaring a great war and was sanctioned only by reason of
33440-491: The most part young men." The National Archives has identified three founding documents as the " Charters of Freedom ": Declaration of Independence, United States Constitution , and Bill of Rights . According to the Archives, these documents "have secured the rights of the American people for nearly two and a half centuries and are considered instrumental to the founding and philosophy of the United States." In addition, as
33660-537: The nation's first constitution, the Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union is also a founding document. As a result, signers of three key documents are generally considered to be Founding Fathers of the United States: Declaration of Independence (DI), Articles of Confederation (AC), and U.S. Constitution (USC). The following table provides a list of these signers, some of whom signed more than one document. The 55 delegates who attended
33880-459: The necessary connection between the criminalized activity and interstate commerce. The Rehnquist Court's Commerce Clause cases helped establish the doctrine of " New Federalism ." The Court's New Federalism doctrine was focused on reining in congressional powers in order to re-strengthen the powers of the individual states which had been weakened during the New Deal era. Members on the Rehnquist Court theorized that by re-apportioning power back to
34100-430: The necessity of an independent judiciary. In 1831, the 76-year-old chief justice traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania , where he underwent an operation to remove bladder stones . That December, his wife, Polly, died in Richmond. In early 1835, Marshall again traveled to Philadelphia for medical treatment, where he died on July 6, 1835, at the age of 79, having served as Chief Justice for over 34 years. The Liberty Bell
34320-675: The next vacancy in the court) so as to deny Jefferson an appointment until two vacancies occurred. In late 1800, Chief Justice Oliver Ellsworth resigned due to poor health. Adams nominated former Chief Justice John Jay to once again lead the Supreme Court, but Jay rejected the appointment, partly due to his frustration at the relative lack of power possessed by the judicial branch of the federal government. Jay's letter of rejection arrived on January 20, 1801, less than two months before Jefferson would take office. Upon learning of Jay's rejection, Marshall suggested that Adams elevate Associate Justice William Paterson to chief justice, but Adams rejected
34540-463: The ninth state to ratify, making the Constitution the law of the land. Virginia followed suit four days later, and New York did the same in late July. After North Carolina's assent in November, another year-and-a-half would pass before the 13th state would weigh in. Facing trade sanctions and the possibility of being forced out of the union, Rhode Island approved the Constitution on May 29, 1790, by
34760-587: The notable contributions they made during the founding era: In the mid-1760s, Parliament began levying taxes on the colonies to finance Britain's debts from the French and Indian War , a decade-long conflict that ended in 1763. Opposition to Stamp Act and Townshend Acts united the colonies in a common cause. While the Stamp Act was withdrawn, taxes on tea remained under the Townshend Acts and took on
34980-409: The official end of the war. After the war, Washington was instrumental in organizing the effort to create a "national militia" made up of individual state units, and under the direction of the federal government. He also endorsed the creation of a military academy to train artillery offices and engineers. Not wanting to leave the country disarmed and vulnerable so soon after the war, Washington favored
35200-457: The omission of a Bill of Rights, particularly Virginia where the opposition was led by Mason and Patrick Henry, who had refused to participate in the convention claiming he "smelt a rat". Rather than risk everything, the Federalists relented, promising that if the Constitution was adopted, amendments would be added to secure people's rights. Over the next year, the string of ratifications continued. Finally, on June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became
35420-529: The other end of the spectrum, those who favored independence. To satisfy the former, Congress adopted the Olive Branch Petition on July 5, an appeal for peace to King George III written by John Dickinson. Then, the following day, it approved the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms , a resolution justifying military action. The declaration, intended for Washington to read to
35640-582: The outbreak of the American Revolutionary War , he joined the Continental Army , serving in numerous battles. During the later stages of the war, he was admitted to the state bar and won election to the Virginia House of Delegates . Marshall favored the ratification of the U.S. Constitution , and he played a major role in Virginia's ratification of that document. At the request of President Adams, Marshall traveled to France in 1797 to help bring an end to attacks on American shipping. In what became known as
35860-684: The overall national goal of stabilizing prices. The Court cited its recent Wrightwood decision and decided, "Whether the subject of the regulation in question was 'production,' 'consumption,' or 'marketing' is, therefore, not material for purposes of deciding the question of federal power before us." The Court reiterated Chief Justice Marshall's decision in Gibbons : "He made emphatic the embracing and penetrating nature of this power by warning that effective restraints on its exercise must proceed from political, rather than from judicial, processes." The Court also stated, "The conflicts of economic interest between
36080-599: The people of the United States was the proudest act of my life." The Marshall Court convened for the first time on February 2, 1801, in the Supreme Court Chamber of the Capitol Building . The Court at that time consisted of Chief Justice Marshall and Associate Justices William Cushing, William Paterson , Samuel Chase , Bushrod Washington, and Alfred Moore , each of whom had been appointed by President Washington or President Adams. Prior to 1801,
36300-439: The plan's innovations was a "plural" executive branch, but its primary concession was to allow the national government to regulate trade and commerce. Meeting as a committee of the whole, the delegates discussed the two proposals beginning with the question of whether there should be a single or three-fold executive and then whether to grant the executive veto power. After agreeing on a single executive who could veto legislation,
36520-413: The poultry industry according to the nondelegation doctrine and as an invalid use of Congress's power under the commerce clause. The unanimous decision rendered unconstitutional the National Industrial Recovery Act , a main component of President Franklin Roosevelt 's New Deal . Again in 1936, in Carter v. Carter Coal Company , the Supreme Court struck down a key element of the New Deal's regulation of
36740-400: The power discussed in the Court's 1942 decision in Wickard v. Filburn . It is arguably the strongest categorical power in the Lopez rule. In essence, it relates to economic activities which, in the aggregate, have a substantial impact on interstate commerce. The Court has stopped short of establishing a rule prohibiting the aggregation of all non-economic activity. In determining whether
36960-425: The power to invalidate laws as unconstitutional. As Marshall put it, "it is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial department to say what the law is." By asserting the power of judicial review in a holding that did not require the Jefferson administration to take action, the Court upheld its own powers without coming into direct conflict with a hostile executive branch that likely would not have complied with
37180-451: The power to regulate commerce, it could not regulate manufacturing, which was seen as being entirely local. In Kidd v. Pearson , 128 U.S. 1 (1888), the Court struck a federal law which prohibited the manufacture of liquor for shipment across state lines. Similar decisions were issued with regard to agriculture, mining, oil production, and generation of electricity. In Swift v. United States , 196 U.S. 375 (1905),
37400-505: The power to regulate interstate navigation: "Commerce, undoubtedly is traffic, but it is something more—it is intercourse.... [A] power to regulate navigation is as expressly granted, as if that term had been added to the word 'commerce'.... [T]he power of Congress does not stop at the jurisdictional lines of the several states . It would be a very useless power if it could not pass those lines." The Court's decision contains language supporting one important line of Commerce Clause jurisprudence,
37620-399: The practice of handing down a single majority opinion of the Court, allowing it to present a clear rule. The Court met in Washington only two months a year, from the first Monday in February through the second or third week in March. Six months of the year the justices were doing circuit duty in the various states. When the Court was in session in Washington, the justices boarded together in
37840-426: The principle that the states could not tax federal institutions. The cases of Martin v. Hunter's Lessee and Cohens v. Virginia established that the Supreme Court could hear appeals from state courts in both civil and criminal matters. Marshall's opinion in Gibbons v. Ogden established that the Commerce Clause bars states from restricting navigation. In the case of Worcester v. Georgia , Marshall held that
38060-460: The public property of the nation, and subject to all the requisite legislation by Congress." United States v. Rands , 389 U.S. 121 (1967). The Rands decision continues: This power to regulate navigation confers upon the United States a dominant servitude , FPC v. Niagara Mohawk Power Corp. , 347 U.S. 239, 249 (1954), which extends to the entire stream and the stream bed below ordinary high-water mark. The proper exercise of this power
38280-422: The purchase on the basis of the Constitution's Contract Clause . The Court's ruling held that the original sale of land constituted a contract with the purchasers, and the Contract Clause prohibits states from "impairing the obligations of contracts." Fletcher v. Peck was the first case in which the Supreme Court ruled a state law unconstitutional, though in 1796 the Court had voided a state law as conflicting with
38500-478: The question of a State's authority to enact legislation, it was not at all propitious when applied to the quite different question of what subjects were within the reach of the national power when Congress chose to exercise it." Similarly, the Court excluded most services by distinguishing them from commerce. In Federal Baseball Club v. National League , 259 U.S. 200 (1922), which was later upheld in Toolson v. New York Yankees (1953) and Flood v. Kuhn (1973),
38720-502: The range of powers granted to Congress by the Commerce Clause. As noted below, it is often paired with the Necessary and Proper Clause , and the combination used to take a more broad, expansive perspective of these powers. During the Marshall Court era (1801–1835), interpretation of the Commerce Clause gave Congress jurisdiction over numerous aspects of intrastate and interstate commerce as well as activity that had traditionally been regarded not to be commerce. Starting in 1937, following
38940-543: The ratification were not published until after his death in 1836. The Constitution, as drafted, was sharply criticized by the Anti-Federalists, a group that contended the document failed to safeguard individual liberties from the federal government. Leading Anti-Federalists included Patrick Henry and Richard Henry Lee, both from Virginia, and Samuel Adams of Massachusetts. Delegates at the Constitutional Convention who shared their views were Virginians George Mason and Edmund Randolph and Massachusetts representative Elbridge Gerry,
39160-469: The regulated and those who advantage by it are wisely left under our system to resolution by the Congress under its more flexible and responsible legislative process. Such conflicts rarely lend themselves to judicial determination. And with the wisdom, workability, or fairness, of the plan of regulation, we have nothing to do." Thereafter, the Court began to defer to the Congress on the theory that determining whether legislation affected commerce appropriately
39380-465: The restraints on which the people must often rely solely, in all representative governments.... In Gibbons , the Court struck down New York State 's attempt to grant a steamboat monopoly to Robert Fulton , which he had then ultimately franchised to Ogden, who claimed river traffic was not "commerce" under the Commerce Clause and that Congress could not interfere with New York State's grant of an exclusive monopoly within its own borders. Ogden's assertion
39600-407: The rights of landowners adjoining or exercising what would otherwise be riparian rights under the common law . The Commerce Clause confers a unique position upon the federal government in connection with navigable waters: "The power to regulate commerce comprehends the control for that purpose, and to the extent necessary, of all the navigable waters of the United States.... For this purpose they are
39820-446: The sale. Jefferson tried to arrange a compromise by having the federal government purchase the land from Georgia and compensate the New Yazooists, but Congressman John Randolph defeated the compensation bill. The issue remained unresolved, and a case involving the land finally reached the Supreme Court through the 1810 case of Fletcher v. Peck . In March 1810, the Court handed down its unanimous holding, which voided Georgia's repeal of
40040-411: The same rooming house, avoided outside socializing, and discussed each case intently among themselves. Decisions were quickly made, usually in a matter of days. The justices did not have clerks, so they listened closely to the oral arguments, and decided among themselves what the decision should be. Marshall's opinions were workmanlike and not especially eloquent or subtle. His influence on learned men of
40260-516: The scope of federal power in controlling innumerable aspects of American life. The Commerce Clause has been the most broadly-interpreted clause in the Constitution, making way for many laws that some argue, contradict the original intended meaning of the Constitution. Justice Thomas has gone so far as to state in his dissent to Gonzales , Respondents Diane Monson and Angel Raich use marijuana that has never been bought or sold, that has never crossed state lines, and that has had no demonstrable effect on
40480-441: The scope of the Constitution, and all means which are appropriate, which are plainly adapted to that end, which are not prohibited but consist with the letter and the spirit of the Constitution, are constitutional." The Court also held that Maryland could not tax the national bank, asserting that the power to tax is equivalent to "the power to destroy." The Court's decision in McCulloch was, according to Joel Richard Paul, "probably
40700-413: The several States, and with the Indian Tribes". Courts and commentators have tended to discuss each of these three areas of commerce as a separate power granted to Congress. It is common to see the individual components of the Commerce Clause referred to under specific terms: the Foreign Commerce Clause, the Interstate Commerce Clause, and the Indian Commerce Clause. Dispute exists within the courts as to
40920-473: The signers and Framers of the founding documents and one of the seven notable leaders previously mentioned— John Jay —the following are regarded as founders based on their contributions to the creation and early development of the new nation: Historians have come to recognize the roles women played in the nation's early development, using the term "Founding Mothers". Among the women honored in this respect are: The following men and women are also recognized for
41140-427: The sixteen words of the Commerce Clause has helped define the balance of power between the federal government and the states and the balance of power between the two elected branches of the federal government and the Judiciary. As such, it directly affects the lives of American citizens. The Commerce Clause provides comprehensive powers to the United States over navigable waters . The powers are critical to understand
41360-457: The sole power to regulate commerce. Newspapers in both the Northern states and the Southern states hailed the decision as a blow against monopolies and the restraint of trade. Marshall personally opposed the presidential candidacy of Andrew Jackson , whom the Chief Justice saw as a dangerous demagogue , and he caused a minor incident during the 1828 presidential campaign when he criticized Jackson's attacks on President John Quincy Adams . After
41580-493: The states by the federal Congress on September 25, 1789, was not ratified by Virginia's Senate until December 15, 1791. The Bill of Rights drew its authority from the consent of the people and held that, Commerce Clause The Commerce Clause describes an enumerated power listed in the United States Constitution ( Article I, Section 8, Clause 3 ). The clause states that the United States Congress shall have power "to regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among
41800-435: The states, individual liberty was strengthened. In contrast, Erwin Chemerinsky believes that limiting the commerce power as the Rehnquist Court did can only lead to the weakening of individual liberties. The outer limits of the New Federalism doctrine were delineated by Gonzales v. Raich in which Justices Antonin Scalia and Anthony Kennedy departed from their previous positions in the Lopez and Morrison to uphold
42020-447: The suggestion, instead saying to Marshall, "I believe I must nominate you." The Senate at first delayed confirming Marshall, as many senators hoped that Adams would choose a different individual to serve as chief justice. According to New Jersey Senator Jonathan Dayton , the Senate finally relented "lest another not so qualified, and more disgusting to the bench, should be substituted, and because it appeared that this gentleman [Marshall]
42240-489: The suit against the defendants, the Eleventh Amendment did not prohibit the case from appearing in federal court. In 1808, Robert R. Livingston and Robert Fulton secured a monopoly from the state of New York for the navigation of steamboats in state waters. Fulton granted a license to Aaron Ogden and Thomas Gibbons to operate steamboats in New York, but the partnership between Ogden and Gibbons collapsed. Gibbons continued to operate steamboats in New York after receiving
42460-482: The supremacy of the federal government in dealing with Native American tribes. In the late 1820s, the state of Georgia stepped up efforts to assert its control over the Cherokee within state borders, with the ultimate goal of removing the Cherokee from the state. After Georgia passed a law that voided Cherokee laws and denied several rights to the Native Americans, former Attorney General William Wirt sought an injunction to prevent Georgia from exercising sovereignty over
42680-426: The tax. After he was convicted by Maryland's court system, McCulloch appealed to the Supreme Court, and the Court heard the case of McCulloch v. Maryland in 1819. In that case, the state of Maryland challenged the constitutionality of the national bank and asserted that it had the right to tax the national bank. Writing for the Court, Marshall held that Congress had the power to charter the national bank. He laid down
42900-408: The test, revealing the shortcomings and weaknesses of America's first Constitution. During this time Washington became convinced that a strong federal government was urgently needed, as the individual states were not meeting the organizational and supply demands of the war on their own individual accord. Key precipitating events included the Boston Tea Party in 1773, Paul Revere's Ride in 1775, and
43120-408: The three delegates who refused to sign the final document. Henry, who derived his hatred of a central governing authority from his Scottish ancestry, did all in his power to defeat the Constitution, opposing Madison every step of the way. The criticisms are what led to the amendments proposed under the Bill of Rights. Madison, the bill's principal author, was originally opposed to the amendments, but
43340-460: The time of its delivery, and enlarged the circle of his reputation" despite his defeat in the case. Vice President John Adams , a member of the Federalist Party, defeated Jefferson in the 1796 presidential election and sought to continue Washington's policy of neutrality in the French Revolutionary Wars. After Adams took office, France refused to meet with American envoys and began attacking American ships. In 1797, Marshall accepted appointment to
43560-437: The troops upon his arrival in Massachusetts, was drafted by Jefferson but edited by Dickinson who thought its language too strong. When the Olive Branch Petition arrived in London in September, the king refused to look at it. By then, he had already issued a proclamation declaring the American colonies in rebellion. Under the auspices of the Second Continental Congress and its Committee of Five , Thomas Jefferson drafted
43780-422: The use of the Commerce Clause to political means, that the Court again ruled that a regulation enacted under the Commerce Clause was unconstitutional. The wide interpretation of the scope of the Commerce Clause continued following the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , which aimed to prevent business from discriminating against black customers. The Supreme Court issued several opinions supporting that use of
44000-461: The war, including prominent writers, orators, and other men and women who contributed to cause. Since the 19th century, the Founding Fathers have shifted from the concept of them as demigods who created the modern nation-state, to take into account their inability to address issues such as slavery and the debt owed after the American Revolutionary War. Scholars emphasize that the Founding Fathers' accomplishments and shortcomings be viewed within
44220-430: The western United States, where he may have entertained plans to establish an independent republic from Mexican or American territories. In 1807, Burr was arrested and charged for treason , and Marshall presided over the subsequent trial. Marshall required Jefferson to turn over his correspondence with General James Wilkinson ; Jefferson decided to release the documents, but argued that he was not compelled to do so under
44440-508: The western territories. Key leaders – George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and others – began fearing for the young nation's fate. As the Articles' weaknesses became more and more apparent, the idea of creating a strong central government gained support, leading to the call for a convention to amend the Articles. The Constitutional Convention met in the Pennsylvania State House from May 14 through September 17, 1787. The 55 delegates in attendance represented
44660-500: Was a decision that was political and legislative, not judicial. That overall change in the Court's jurisprudence, beginning with Parrish , is often referred to as the Constitutional Revolution of 1937 , in which the Court shifted from exercising judicial review of legislative acts to protect economic rights to a paradigm that focused most strongly on protecting civil liberties. It was not until United States v. Lopez (1995) decision, after nearly 60 years of leaving any restraint on
44880-439: Was a delegate to the state constitutional convention of 1829–30 , where he was again joined by fellow American statesman and loyal Virginians, James Madison and James Monroe , although all were quite old by that time (Madison was 78, Monroe 71, and Marshall 74). Although proposals to reduce the power of the Tidewater's slavocracy in relation to the growing western population proved controversial, Marshall mainly spoke to promote
45100-404: Was admitted to the state bar in 1780. After briefly rejoining the Continental Army , Marshall won election to the Virginia House of Delegates in early 1782. Upon joining the House of Delegates, Marshall aligned himself with members of the conservative Tidewater establishment such as James Monroe and Richard Henry Lee . With the backing of his influential father-in-law, Marshall was elected to
45320-471: Was among the last remaining Founding Fathers (a group poetically called the " Last of the Romans "), the last surviving Cabinet member from the John Adams administration and the last Cabinet member to have served in the 18th century. In December 1835, President Andrew Jackson nominated Roger Taney to fill the vacancy for chief justice. Over the course of his life, Marshall owned hundreds of slaves. During his most influential period as chief justice, through
45540-405: Was drafted in November 1782, and negotiations began in April 1783. The completed treaty was signed on September 3. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, John Jay and Henry Laurens represented the United States, while David Hartley , a member of Parliament, and Richard Oswald , a prominent and influential Scottish businessman, represented Great Britain. Franklin, who had a long-established rapport with
45760-414: Was in a dispute over the state's paper currency, had refused to send anyone to the convention. Of the 42 delegates present, only three refused to sign: Randolph and George Mason, both of Virginia, and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts. The U. S. Constitution faced one more hurdle: approval by the legislatures in at least nine of the 13 states. Within three days of the signing, the draft was submitted to
45980-407: Was influenced by the 1776 Virginia Declaration of Rights , primarily written by Mason, and the Declaration of Independence, by Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson, while in France, shared Henry's and Mason's fears about a strong central government, especially the president's power, but because of his friendship with Madison and the pending Bill of Rights, he quieted his concerns. Alexander Hamilton, however,
46200-453: Was legally bound to deliver Marbury's commission, and that Marbury had the right to sue Madison. Yet the Court also held that it could not order Madison to deliver the commission because the Judiciary Act of 1789 had unconstitutionally expanded the Court's original jurisdiction to include writs of mandamus , a type of court order that commands a government official to perform an act they are legally required to perform. Because that portion of
46420-415: Was my only intelligent companion; and was both a watchful parent and an affectionate friend." Thomas Marshall prospered in his work as a surveyor, and in the 1770s he purchased an estate known as Oak Hill . After the 1775 Battles of Lexington and Concord , Thomas and John Marshall volunteered for service in the 3rd Virginia Regiment . In 1776, Marshall became a lieutenant in the 11th Virginia Regiment of
46640-466: Was not privy to his own nomination". Marshall was confirmed by the Senate on January 27, 1801, and took office on February 4. At the request of the president, he continued to serve as Secretary of State until Adams' term expired on March 4. Consequently, Marshall was charged with delivering judicial commissions to the individuals who had been appointed to the positions created by the Midnight Judges Act. Adams would later state that "my gift of John Marshall to
46860-525: Was operational on an interstate channel of navigation. In its decision, the Court assumed interstate commerce required movement of the subject of regulation across state borders. The decision contains the following principles, some of which have since been altered by subsequent decisions: Additionally, the Marshall Court limited the extent of federal maritime and admiralty jurisdiction to tidewaters in The Steam-Boat Thomas Jefferson Johnson . In Cherokee Nation v. Georgia , 30 U.S. 1 (1831),
47080-465: Was opposed to a Bill of Rights believing the amendments not only unnecessary but dangerous: Why declare things shall not be done, which there is no power to do ... that the liberty of the press shall not be restrained, when no power is given by which restrictions may be imposed? Madison had no way of knowing the debate between Virginia's two legislative houses would delay the adoption of the amendments for more than two years. The final draft, referred to
47300-440: Was posing a threat to the self-rule that had existed in the Americas since the 1600s. Intent on responding to the Acts, twelve of the Thirteen Colonies agreed to send delegates to meet in Philadelphia as the First Continental Congress , with Georgia declining because it needed British military support in its conflict with native tribes. The concept of an American union had been entertained long before 1774, but always embraced
47520-454: Was preceded by a split between Adams and Hamilton, the latter of whom led a faction of Federalists who favored declaring war on France. Adams fired Secretary of State Timothy Pickering, a Hamilton supporter, after Pickering tried to undermine peace negotiations with France. Adams directed Marshall to bring an end to the Quasi-War and settle ongoing disputes with Britain, Spain , and the Barbary States . The position of Secretary of State also held
47740-536: Was rung following his death—a widespread story claims that this was when the bell cracked, never to be rung again. Unbeknownst to Marshall, his eldest son, Thomas , had died only a few days before, killed by the collapse of a chimney during a storm in Baltimore, through which he was passing on his way to be at his dying father's side. Marshall's body was returned to Richmond and buried next to Polly's in Shockoe Hill Cemetery . The inscription on his tombstone, engraved exactly as he had wished, reads as follows: Marshall
47960-424: Was sworn into office when the 6th Congress convened in December 1799. He quickly emerged as a leader of the moderate faction of Federalists in Congress. His most notable speech in Congress was related to the case of Thomas Nash (alias Jonathan Robbins), whom the government had extradited to Great Britain on charges of murder. Marshall defended the government's actions, arguing that nothing in the Constitution prevents
48180-441: Was unanimously elected its first president. The Congress came close to disbanding in its first few days over the issue of representation, with smaller colonies desiring equality with the larger ones. While Patrick Henry , from the largest colony, Virginia, disagreed, he stressed the greater importance of uniting the colonies: "The distinctions between Virginians, Pennsylvanians, New Yorkers, and New Englanders are no more. I am not
48400-526: Was untenable: he contended that New York could control river traffic within New York all the way to the border with New Jersey and that New Jersey could control river traffic within New Jersey all the way to the border with New York, leaving Congress with the power to control the traffic as it crossed the state line. Thus, Ogden contended, Congress could not invalidate his monopoly if transported passengers only within New York. The Supreme Court, however, found that Congress could invalidate his monopoly since it
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