Title: 06-01pp.194
1. Which of the following chief justices supported the concept of cooperative federalism?
2. In Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918), the Supreme Court struck down the federal Child Labor Act
of 1916. What was the primary ground upon which the decision was based?
3. In National League of Cities v. Usery (1976) the Court considered the constitutionality of the
1974 amendments to the Fair Labor Standards Act that extended the act’s minimum wage and
maximum hours provisions to the states and their political subdivisions. The Court held that
Congress exceeded its authority in attempting to regulate the wages and hours of state and local
government employees.
4. Which of the following statements about Printz v. United States (a 1997; challenge to the 1993
5. Dual federalism places a great deal of emphasis on _______.
6. In federalism cases the Rehnquist Court is best known for focusing on what type of
federalism?
7. In federalism cases the Taney Court is best known for focusing on _______.
8. Cooperative Federalism places a great deal of emphasis on _______.
9. In Nevada Department. of Human Resources v. Hibbs, the Court changed directions in its
analysis of the Eleventh Amendment because _______.
10. Federalism cases on the U.S. Supreme Court have progressed _______.
11. In the case of Scott v. Sandford (1857), how did the Court rule with respect to the following:
Did Dred Scott become a free man because he spent a portion of his life in a free state? Was the
Missouri Compromise constitutionally valid? Did Scott have the legal right to take his case to
federal court?
12. What provision of the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act of 1980 did the Court find
constitutionally invalid in the case of New York v. United States (1992)? Why did that provision
violate the Constitution?
13. Define the term sovereign immunity.
14. What rationale did Marshall use in McCulloch to justify the argument that states may not tax
national banks? Be sure to include a discussion of federal power outlined in the Constitution, as
well as Marshall’s discussion of limits on state power.
15. Compare and contrast the views of dual and cooperative federalism. What provisions of the
constitution support each view?
16. What rationale did Justice Scalia use to justify the Court’s decision in Printz v. United.
States? How did dissenters respond to this justification?
17. Using examples of Court eras and cases decided, explain the differences between dual and
cooperative federalism. Which view of federalism do you find most appealing? Why?
18. What arguments did Justice Blackmun use to justify overruling National League of Cities in
Garcia v. SAMTA? Do you find his argument compelling? Why or why not?
19. Several years ago, Congress passed legislation permitting citizens to register to vote when
they obtain or renew their driver’s licenses (the Motor Voter Law). Congress thought that it
could pass this legislation based on a power that could be implied from various enumerated
powers (e.g., Article I, Section 4: “The Times, Places and Manner of holding elections for
Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed by the [state] legislatures; but the Congress
may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places of chusing
Senators.”)
The State of Illinois disagrees. While conceding that the Motor Voter Law is constitutional as it
pertains to federal elections, Illinois argues that it is unconstitutional as applied to state elections.
In Illinois’s view, the Motor Voter statute directly interferes with states’ rights. So Illinois is
allowing voters, who registered when they obtained their licenses, to vote for federal candidates
but not for state candidates.
Suppose John Marshall were still chief justice. How would he react to this argument? How
would a Marshall opinion in this case differ from one written by, say, Roger B. Taney? Please
note that you are not being asked to write an essay determining whether or not this law is
constitutional; rather, you should analyze the approaches that Marshall and Taney would take in
their opinions.
Finally, if you were a justice on the Supreme Court, to which view of federalism would you
subscribe: Marshall’s, Taney’s, or something in between? Explain why.
Be sure to justify all of your responses with reference to relevant Supreme Court precedent.