Download constitutional clauses

AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
CONSTITUTIONAL CLAUSES
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Presentment Clause
o Article I, Section 7
o Outlines federal legislative procedure for bills to become federal law
Taxing and Spending Clause
o Article I, Section 8
o Congress’s power of the purse
Necessary and Proper Clause AKA Elastic Clause
o Article I, Section 8
o Congress authorized to establish “necessary and proper” laws to enforce the Constitution
Commerce Clause
o Article I, Section 8
o Congress authorized to regulate commerce between states, foreign nations, and native
tribes
o Cannot regulate intrastate commerce (within states)
Constitutional Limits
o Article I, Section 9
o Guarantee of habeas corpus, no bills of attainder, no ex post facto laws
Contract Clause
o Article I, Section 10
o Prohibits states from retroactively impairing contract rights
Take Care Clause AKA Faithful Execution Clause
o Article II, Section 3, Clause 5
o The President must enforce the law
Full Faith and Credit Clause
o Article IV, Section 1
o States must respect the laws, contracts, and judicial decisions of other states
Privileges and Immunities Clause
o Article IV, Section 2
o Prohibits states from discriminating citizens from other states
Supremacy Clause
o Article VI
o Federal law is the supreme law of the land and supersedes state and local laws
Establishment Clause
o 1st Amendment
o Federal government may not establish an official religion or religious preference
Free Exercise Clause
o 1st Amendment
o Each citizen may have freedom of conscience/religion
Citizenship Clause
o 14th Amendment
o All native-born and naturalized people of the United States are citizens and guaranteed
constitutional protections
o Applied to the states
Due Process Clause
o 14th Amendment
o Prevents states and local governments from denying rights without legislative or judicial
process
Equal Protection Clause
o 14th Amendment
o Each state is required to guarantee equal protection to all people within its jurisdiction
o Strict scrutiny, intermediate scrutiny, rational basis
AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
JUDICIAL REVIEW
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Marbury v. Madison (1803)
o Established judicial review; determining constitutionality of laws
FEDERALISM
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Chisolm v. Georgia (1783)
o Federal courts could decide on lawsuits against states
o Overturned by Eleventh Amendment in 1795
Fletcher v. Peck (1810)
o Establish constitutionality of state laws
o Upheld Contract Clause protections
Martin v. Hunter’s Lessee (1816)
o Federal courts can review state court decisions
McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
o Expanded implied powers through Necessary and Proper Clause
 Bank of the United States ruled constitutional
o Enforced Supremacy Clause over states prohibiting states to tax federal institutions
Dartmouth College v. Woodward (1819)
o Upheld private contracts through Contracts Clause
o Ruled against New Hampshire protecting Dartmouth’s private charter with Great Britain
before the Revolution
Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
o Expanded the federal power on interstate commerce through the Commerce Clause
 Included navigation as an aspect of commerce
o Reiterated supremacy of federal law over state laws
Cherokee Nation v. Georgia (1831)
o Native tribes are dependent entities, not foreign nations, therefore subject to federal
jurisdiction
Worcester v. Georgia (1832)
o Endorsed native tribal sovereignty against state laws and governments
Barron v. Baltimore (1833)
o Limited application of Bill of Rights to the federal government and not to the states
Charles River Bridge v. Warren Bridge (1837)
o Massachusetts granting of a contract for a new bridge did not violate the Contract Clause
o Viewed as a victory for states’ rights
Munn v. Illinois (1876)
o States could regulate private property used for the public interest per the 14th Amendment
Wabash, St. Louis & Pacific Railway Co. v. Illinois (1886)
o States could not place a direct burden on interstate commerce per Commerce Clause
o Led to the establishment of the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC)
United States v. E.C. Knight Co. (1895)
o Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1980 ruled constitutional
o Manufacturing not included in commerce power regulation
U.S. Term Limits v. Thornton (1975)
o States applying federal congressional term limits ruled unconstitutional
United States v. Lopez (1995)
o Congress applied Commerce Clause to restricting firearms in school zones
o Ruled unconstitutional since the restriction did not apply to economic activity; limited
Congress’s commerce regulation power
AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
SEPARATION OF POWERS/CHECKS AND BALANCES
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Ex Parte Merryman (1861)
o Only Congress can suspend habeas corpus, not the President.
Prize Cases (1863)
o President, as Commander-in-Chief, could order a naval blockade without a congressional
declaration of war
Ex Parte Milligan (1866)
o Civilians may not be tried in military tribunals if civilian courts functioning, even in a
time of rebellion or war
Schechter Poultry Corp. v. United States (1935)
o National Industrial Recovery Act violated separation of powers by unconstitutionally
delegating legislative powers to the president
o Sparked Franklin Roosevelt’s court-packing threat to the Supreme Court to ensure New
Deal programs
United States v. Nixon (1974)
o Executive privilege does not protect the president from criminal investigation
Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) v. Chadha (1983)
o Legislative veto ruled unconstitutional in violation of the Presentment Clause
Clinton v. Jones (1997)
o President is subject to civil investigation and litigation based on events prior to taking
office as president
Clinton v. City of New York (1998)
o Line-item veto ruled unconstitutional in violation of the Presentment Clause
ELECTIONS/CAMPAIGN FINANCE
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Baker v. Carr (1962)
o Legislative apportionment ruled a justiciable issue and not a political question
Wesberry v. Sanders (1964)
o U.S. congressional districts must be redrawn with equal population
Reynolds v. Sims (1964)
o State legislative districts must be redrawn with equal population
Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections (1966)
o Poll taxes ruled unconstitutional per Equal Protection Clause
Shaw v. Reno (1993)
o Redistricting based on race limited
Buckley v. Valeo (1976)
o FECA’s restrictions on individual and PAC contributions ruled constitutional
o FECA’s restrictions on independent expenditures, candidate’s personal contributions, and
total campaign expenditures ruled unconstitutional
Bush v. Gore (2000)
o Local election standards violated Due Process and Equal Protection clauses.
o 5-4 decision led to Florida’s electoral votes awarded to Bush for presidency
Citizens United v. Federal Elections Commission (FEC) (2010)
o BCRA’s ban on soft money ruled unconstitutional
AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
CIVIL LIBERTIES
Establishment Clause – First Amendment
- Everson v. Board of Education (1947)
o Incorporation of the Establishment Clause
- Engel v. Vitale (1962)
o Prohibits school-led prayer in public schools
- Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971)
o Established Lemon Test for constitutional religious laws
 Law must have a secular legislative purpose
 Law must not advance or inhibit religion
 Law must not result in excessive government entanglement with religion
- Santa Fe Independent School District v. Doe (2002)
o School-led prayer at public school football games is unconstitutional
Free Exercise Clause – First Amendment
- Reynolds v. United States (1879)
o Polygamy ruled illegal despite religious doctrine
- Wisconsin v. Yoder (1972)
o Compulsory education laws past 8th grade violated religious upbringing
- Oregon v. Smith (1990)
o Prohibited the use of peyote, an illegal drug, for religious purposes
- Church of the Lukumi Babalu Aye v. City of Hialeah (1993)
o States cannot restrict religious-mandated animal sacrifices
Freedom of Speech – First Amendment
- Schenck v. United States (1919)
o Established “clear and present danger” limit on free speech
- Gitlow v. New York (1925)
o Newspapers advocating the violent overthrow of government ruled illegal
o Incorporated free speech to states
- Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire (1942)
o Fighting words are free speech
- Tinker v. Des Moines (1969)
o Symbolic speech (black armbands) constitutional
- Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969)
o Inflammatory speech may only be limited if incites imminent lawless action
- Miller v. California (1973)
o Established the Miller Test for obscenity laws
 Average person applying contemporary community standards finds work
appeals to prurient interest
 Depicts or describes in an offensive way sexual conduct or excretory functions
 Lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value
- Texas v. Johnson (1989)
o Burning of the American flag in protest is protected as symbolic speech
- Reno v. ACLU (1997)
o Regulation of the internet violates Free Speech (with exception to obscenity and child
pornography)
AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
Freedom of Press – First Amendment
- Near v. Minnesota (1931)
o Limited the government’s use of prior restraint on newspapers
o Incorporation of Free Press to the states
- New York Times v. Sullivan (1964)
o Libel must be proven with malicious intent
o Allowed for increased criticism of public figures and officials
- New York Times v. United States (1971)
o Limited prior restraint on matters of public concern
o Pentagon Papers
- Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier (1988)
o Prior restraint allowed for school administration to ensure safety
Freedom of Assembly – First Amendment
- DeJonge v. Oregon (1937)
o Incorporated freedom of assembly allowing a communist group to organize
- NAACP v. Alabama (1958)
o Ruled Alabama’s request for membership lists as a violation of right of association
- Boy Scouts of America v. Dale (2000)
o Private associations may exclude members based on certain criteria
Freedom to Petition Government for Redress of Grievances – First Amendment
- Edwards v. South Carolina (1963)
o Incorporated to the states
Right to Bear Arms – Second Amendment
- District of Columbia (DC) v. Heller (2008)
o Guaranteed an individual’s right to bear arms
- McDonald v. Chicago (2010)
o Applied the Second Amendment’s guarantee of an individual’s right to bear arms to the
states
Search and Seizure – Fourth Amendment
- Wolf v. Colorado (1949)
o Evidence illegally obtained may be used in criminal proceedings
- Mapp v. Ohio (1961)
o Established the exclusionary rule and incorporated to the states
o Overturned Wolf v. Colorado
- Nix v. Williams (1984)
o Discovery rule allowed evidence in criminal proceedings
- United States v. Leon (1984)
o Established “good faith exception” to the exclusionary rule
Self-Incrimination – Fifth Amendment
- Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
o Informed of rights prior to official interrogation
o Right to remain silent, right to an attorney, provision of attorney
Double Jeopardy – Fifth Amendment
- Palko v. Connecticut (1937)
o Incorporation of double jeopardy
Eminent Domain (Takings Clause) – Fifth Amendment
- Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad Co. v. Chicago (1897)
o Incorporation of eminent domain; fair compensation for seized property
AP UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT & POLITICS SUPREME COURT REVIEW
Right to Counsel – Sixth Amendment
- Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
o Right to an attorney if unable to afford one
o Applied to the states
- Escobedo v. Illinois (1964)
o Right to an attorney during interrogations
Cruel and Unusual Punishment – Eighth Amendment
- Furman v. Georgia (1972)
o Death penalty unconstitutional based on indiscriminate and inconsistent application
- Gregg v. Georgia (1976)
o Death penalty ruled constitutional based on juries receiving standards of sentencing
Right to Privacy – Ninth Amendment, Fourteenth Amendment
- Griswold v. Connecticut (1965)
o Prevention of the use of contraceptives ruled unconstitutional
- Roe v. Wade (1973)
o Woman’s right to terminate a pregnancy within first trimester ruled constitutional
- Cruzan v. Missouri Department of Health (1990)
o Right to die case leading to living will legislation in states
- Planned Parenthood v. Casey (1992)
o Right to terminate pregnancies upheld, but restrictions allowed only if laws do not place
any “undue burden” on the mother
CIVIL RIGHTS
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Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)
o Persons of African descent are not eligible for citizenship
o Property rights cannot be denied; slavery legal in all states; Missouri Compromise ruled
unconstitutional
o Federal government must enforce fugitive slave law
Slaughterhouse Cases (1873)
o The 14th Amendment’s Privileges and Immunities clause limited only to powers granted
to the federal government and not powers reserved to the states
Civil Rights Cases (1883)
o Congress could not enforce civil rights legislation against private citizens and their
actions, only state action
Plessy v. Ferguson (1896)
o Established separate but equal doctrine
Korematsu v. United States (1944)
o Legal internment of Japanese
Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)
o Desegregation of schools
o Overturned Plessy v. Ferguson and separate but equal
Regents of the University of California v. Bakke (1978)
o Quotas based on race could not be used for college admissions
o Affirmative action case of reverse discrimination
Lawrence v. Texas (2003)
o Overturned sodomy laws; ensured privacy for homosexuals