Question 1

Imagine you are a resident of California and have a California driver's license.If you decide to take a road trip to Arizona,which clause of the Constitution requires Arizona to recognize your California driver's license?

Accepted Answer

The Full Faith and Credit Clause of the Constitution requires each state to recognize the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other state. This includes recognizing driver's licenses issued by other states. Therefore, Arizona must recognize the California driver's license of the individual taking a road trip from California to Arizona.

Question 2

According to the __________ clause,if a couple marries in Texas as regulated by state law,then Missouri must also recognize that marriage even though the couple was not married under Missouri state law.

Accepted Answer

The Full Faith and Credit Clause requires each state to recognize the laws, public records, and court decisions of other states. This includes recognizing marriages that are legally performed in other states, even if the marriage would not have been allowed under the laws of the recognizing state.

Question 3

Each state is normally expected to honor "the public Acts,Records,and judicial Proceedings" that take place in any other state because of Article IV,Section 1,of the Constitution,which is referred to as the __________ clause.

Accepted Answer

This clause is commonly known as the full faith and credit clause, and it requires each state to recognize and enforce legal decisions made in other states. This ensures that laws and court rulings have a consistent application and are not disregarded simply because a person or case crosses state lines.

Question 4

The first and most important Supreme Court case favoring national power over the economy was

Accepted Answer

McCulloch v. Maryland established the principle of implied powers and upheld the constitutionality of the Bank of the United States, setting the precedent for the federal government to have a strong role in regulating the national economy.

Question 5

Well into the twentieth century,most efforts by Congress to regulate commerce were blocked by the Supreme Court's interpretation of federalism,with the primary barrier being the concept of

Accepted Answer

The primary barrier that blocked Congress from regulating commerce was the concept of interstate commerce, as interpreted by the Supreme Court under federalism. The Court held that Congress could only regulate commerce that crossed state lines, whereas activities that occurred solely within one state were within the sole purview of state regulation. This limited view of the Commerce Clause lasted until the New Deal era when the Court began to expand Congress's regulatory authority.

Question 6

Article IV,Section 2,of the Constitution prohibits a state from discriminating against someone from another state or giving special advantages to its own residents.That section is referred to as the __________ clause.

Accepted Answer

The clause prohibiting state discrimination against out-of-state residents and giving special privileges to its own residents is known as the "privileges and immunities" clause. This clause is intended to promote unity and fairness among the states in their dealings with each other.

Question 7

Two or more states reach a legally binding agreement about how to solve a problem that crosses state lines through

Accepted Answer

A compact is a legally binding agreement between two or more states, often used to solve problems that cross state lines such as water rights or environmental concerns. Treaties are agreements between nations, not states. Statutory bargain and bill of attainder are not relevant to addressing problems between states. Transaction clause is not a term commonly used in this context.

Question 8

A system of government in which fundamental governmental powers are shared between the federal and state governments and in which the states exercise the most important powers is known as

Accepted Answer

Dual federalism, also known as layer cake federalism, is a system of government in which the powers and responsibilities of the federal and state governments are clearly defined and separate from one another. In this system, the federal and state governments each have their own specific powers and responsibilities, with little overlap or sharing of authority. Dual federalism was the dominant form of federalism in the United States until the 1930s, when the New Deal program of the federal government led to an expansion of federal power and a shift towards cooperative federalism.

Question 9

The power delegated by the state to a local unit of government to manage its own affairs is called

Accepted Answer

Home rule refers to the power granted to a local government by the state to govern and manage its own affairs without interference from the state government. This allows for greater autonomy and flexibility in decision-making at the local level.

Question 10

In the late nineteenth century,why was the Supreme Court willing to allow federal regulation of railroads and waterway transportation but less willing to allow regulation of factory and workplace safety?

Accepted Answer

The Supreme Court believed that the regulation of workplace safety was a matter of local concern since the goods produced had not yet passed into commerce and crossed state lines. On the other hand, the regulation of railroads and waterways involved interstate commerce, thus falling under the purview of the federal government.

Question 11

Late in the nineteenth century,when the national government sought to use its power to regulate the economy rather than merely promote economic development,the concept of interstate commerce began to operate more as a

Accepted Answer

As the national government sought to use its power to regulate the economy, the concept of interstate commerce began to serve as a barrier because it allowed the government to regulate economic activity that crossed state lines, which could potentially undermine or conflict with state-level regulations or interests. Therefore, the concept of interstate commerce served as a means to regulate and control economic activity rather than a catalyst, stimulus, point of leverage, or source of national power.

Question 12

Which clause in the Constitution prevents a state such as Florida from prohibiting legal residents of other states from buying property in Florida?

Accepted Answer

The comity or privileges and immunities clause prevents states from discriminating against citizens of other states in favor of its own residents, ensuring that legal residents of other states have the same property rights.

Question 13

The system of government that prevailed in the United States from the writing of the Constitution to approximately the Great Depression could be most accurately characterized as __________ federalism.

Accepted Answer

Dual federalism, also known as layer cake federalism, refers to the system of government where there is a clear separation of powers between the national and state governments. Each level of government has their distinct responsibilities, and there is minimal overlap. This system prevailed in the United States from the writing of the Constitution to approximately the Great Depression, where the national government was limited in its authority and there was a greater emphasis on states' rights.

Question 14

The commerce clause of the Constitution gives the federal government power to

Accepted Answer

The commerce clause in the Constitution grants the power to regulate interstate commerce and trade with foreign nations to the federal government. This means that Congress has the authority to regulate economic activities that take place between different states and with other countries.

Question 15

Until 2013,states had not been required to recognize same-sex marriages legalized in other states,despite the full faith and credit clause,because of

Accepted Answer

The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was a federal law enacted in 1996 that defined marriage as between one man and one woman for the purposes of federal law. This law allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages legalized in other states, despite the full faith and credit clause of the US Constitution which requires states to honor legal judgments and decisions made by other states. DOMA was overturned in 2013 by the Supreme Court in the case of United States v. Windsor, which paved the way for the recognition of same-sex marriages across the country.

Question 16

A prisoner convicted of murder and facing the death penalty in the state of Texas escapes but is later recaptured by authorities in the state of Vermont.Unlike Texas,Vermont does not have the death penalty.In this case,the state of Vermont is required to

Accepted Answer

Vermont is required to return the convict to Texas as they have jurisdiction over the case and the sentencing. Vermont cannot alter the original penalty imposed by Texas.

Question 17

In the case of McCulloch v.Maryland,the main issue was whether Congress had the power to

Accepted Answer

The main issue in McCulloch v. Maryland was whether Congress had the power to charter a bank. Specifically, the case involved the state of Maryland trying to tax the Bank of the United States, which had been created by Congress in 1791 to handle government funds and regulate the economy. Chief Justice John Marshall ultimately ruled that Congress did have the power to create the bank, based on the Constitution's Necessary and Proper Clause.

Question 18

In a federal system,the 50 state governments retain sovereignty,which prevents the federal government from interfering in the financial matters of states.However,state governments can become involved in the fiscal matters of local governments,which is most recently evident in the state takeover of the city finances of Harrisburg,Pennsylvania,and Detroit,Michigan.Why can state governments interfere in the fiscal matters of local governments but the federal government not interfere in the fiscal matters of state governments?

Accepted Answer

Local governments are not recognized by the U.S. Constitution, which means they are considered creations of the state governments and thus subject to state oversight and intervention.

Question 19

Over the course of American history,how has the Supreme Court interpreted the interstate commerce clause of Article I,Section 8?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Over the course of American history,how has...

Question 20

The state of Michigan passed a law that allowed wineries within the state to ship wine directly to Michigan consumers without having to go through a wholesaler.The same law prohibited out-of-state wineries from doing the same.In effect,the cost of out-of-state wine increased as it had to go through a wholesaler,thereby providing incentives for Michigan consumers to purchase Michigan wine.However,in 2005,the Supreme Court ruled in Granholm v.Heald that the law was unconstitutional because it discriminated against out-of-state wineries.Which clause of the Constitution did the Court use to declare the Michigan law unconstitutional?

Accepted Answer

The Commerce Clause and the Privileges and Immunities Clause were both used by the Supreme Court to declare the Michigan law unconstitutional in Granholm v. Heald. The Commerce Clause gives Congress the power to regulate commerce between states, and the Court found that the Michigan law discriminated against out-of-state wineries in violation of this clause. The Privileges and Immunities Clause prohibits states from discriminating against citizens of other states with respect to basic economic rights, and the Court found that the Michigan law violated this clause as well.

Quiz 3: Federalism and the Separation of Powers