Commentaire de l'arrêt McCulloch v. Maryland de la Cour Suprême américaine (1819)

Extraits

[...] Maryland (1819) Commentary The court addresses two issues in the text: The first one is: “Does Congress have the power to incorporate a And the second issue is : Does a state have the power to tax an instrumentality of the U.S. government? Does Congress have the power to incorporate a bank? To the first question, Chief Justice Marshall endorses a national-power theory. Under this theory, the Constitution draws its power directly from the American people, and not the states. Marshall's textual argument is really convincing. He points out page eighteen that the Constitution states is "the supreme law of the land" and that all other law must be subordinate to the Constitution. [...]

[...] Marshall uses two lines of argument in deciding that Maryland may not tax the bank: First, he acknowledges the authority of states to tax. However, Marshall observes that the bank is a creation of the federal government, and, as such, has the authority of the whole people of the United States. Only Maryland created the tax upon the bank, and that tax has only the authority of the people of Maryland. To allow the people of Maryland to tax an instrument of the federal government would allow them to exceed their authority under the Constitution and extend their power over all the people of the United States. [...]

[...] Justice Marshall set the standard for answering the first question posed in commerce cause cases - does Congress have the power to regulate a topic? In the specific case of McCulloch and a national bank, Justice Marshall answered that question yes. However, his decision also set the standard that Congress should be given great discretion to have authority or power over topics. John Marshall did not want the power of the national government to be restricted. In conclusion, the rulings of the Supreme Court had a significant impact on American society, from the nineteen century to 1825. [...]

[...] Because it could be used to destroy the bank, Maryland's taxation of the bank is incompatible with Congress's creation of the bank. Maryland must yield to congress and may not tax the bank. It was pointed out that the Constitution gave Congress the right to make all laws necessary for putting the Government's powers into action. Conclusion In McCulloch, Justice Marshall resolved one of the most difficult issues facing this new nation. He fearlessly and systematically confronted the conflicting theories of the federalists and anti-federalists. [...]

[...] The Court mostly ruled in favor of the federal government, not the state governments. As a result, the states lost many of their rights, especially the right to challenge an action of the federal government, such as the creation of a National Bank. These Supreme Court cases and the opposition to states' rights laid the foundation for the South's dissension from the North during the Civil War. [...]