Mcculloch V. Maryland Case Analysis

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Many people today argue that McCulloch v. Maryland is one of the most important Supreme Court cases in United States history. Three main points were made by Chief Justice Marshall in this case, and all of these points have become critical and necessary parts of the U.S. Government and how it functions. The first part of the Supreme Court’s ruling stated that Congress has implied powers under a specific part of the Constitution referred to as the Necessary and Proper Clause. The second section of the ruling determined that the laws of the United States are more significant and powerful than any state laws that conflict with them. The last element addressed by Chief Justice Marshall was that sovereignty of the Union lies with the people of the …show more content…

The first one asked whether the Bank was constitutional or not, and the second one asked if “Maryland’s law unconstitutionally interfered with congressional powers” (“McCulloch v. Maryland,” Oyez). The Second Bank of the United States was decided to be constitutional because of the Necessary and Proper Clause that is found in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution. This clause grants Congress the power to “pass laws that are necessary and proper for the execution of its enumerated powers” (McBride). A few enumerated powers given to Congress include regulating interstate commerce, borrowing money, and collecting taxes. Since Congress possess these powers, the creation of the Bank was related, necessary, and proper. Next, the Supremacy Clause of Article VI of the Constitution states that the laws of the United States “trump” any state laws that conflict with them. Chief Justice Marshall stated that Maryland was unconstitutionally undermining the superior laws of the United States and the supreme law of the land. Lastly, the Supreme Court ruled that the political authority of the Union belongs to only the people of the United States and not the individual states. The people created, and are governed by, the Constitution and they give the U.S. Government its power. Maryland’s tax “acted as a levy against all the people in the United States by a state accountable to only some of the people.” Basically, Maryland’s tax violated constitutional sovereignty by trying to give political authority to the State instead of the

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