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Chapter 5
Constitutional Principles
Introduction
Chapter Five addresses these questions:
• What is the importance of the United States Constitution?
• How does the idea of federalism affect the government’s structure?
• What is “separation of powers,” and what does it mean for the branches of government?
• How does the commerce clause affect the legal environment of business?
• What are the tax and spending powers of the federal government?
• How do the Constitution’s amendments affect the legal environment of business?
Achieving Teaching Excellence
Encouraging Better Student Responses to Questions in Class
Once instructors learn how to ask good questions in class, instructors need to know how to
get their students to give good responses. Instructors also need to know what to do with the
responses students give.
One of the best changes a teacher can make to improve student responses to questions is to
increase the “wait time” after they ask a question. J.T. Dillon, in his article on research on
questioning and discussion, explains the idea of wait time. Wait time refers to the amount of time
a teacher pauses after asking a question. Instructors will know wait time is a problem for them if
they answer their own questions without giving students time to think, and then respond. Thomas
R. McDaniel, in his article on asking better questions in class, mentioned something surprising.
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volunteer, more questions are answered, students report that class is more interesting, students
ask more questions, and student responses are more analytical. Students are more likely to
synthesize, and they are more creative. Taking into consideration all those benefits, all that the
instructors have to do is increase the wait time!
Instructors must try to work on their wait time in classes. The wait time can be increased by
instructors by counting (1…2…3…) to themselves and make sure that students have time to
think and respond. Instructors would be surprised at how well students can answer the questions
Once students respond to the instructor’s better questions, and give better answers,
instructors need to know how to respond to their improved answers. Verbal reinforcements are
important, McDaniel says, but instructors have to be careful. They need to use a variety of
reinforcements, including nonverbal cues. Also, they have to be careful not to overuse
reinforcements. Although telling students all their answers are great might boost their self-
McDaniel makes another good suggestion and writes that instructors should use a technique
called “suspended judgment.” This technique “keeps the thinking process alive for longer
References
• J.T. Dillon, “Research on Questioning and Discussion,” 42 EDUCATIONAL
LEADERSHIP 50 (November 1984).
Thomas R. McDaniel, “A Question of Questions: Can We Ask Better Ones?” THE SOCIAL
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Chapter Overview, Topic Outline, and Discussion Questions
Chapter Overview
Fiercely independent, highly individualistic, and very proud of their country would be a
good characterization of Americans. Many say there is no place they would rather live than the
United States. Much of their pride stems from a belief that they have a strong Constitution,
which secures for all individuals their most fundamental rights. Most people, however, are not
Instructors should make sure to include a lengthy discussion of the Gonzalez v. Raich case.
Save time for it. Students may also be interested in the Paula Jones case. Finally, the chapter
includes a new section on the taxing and spending powers of the federal government. This
Topic Outline
I. The Constitution
II. Federalism
A. Supremacy Clause
B. Federal Preemption
III. Separation of Powers
A. William Jefferson Clinton v. Paula Corbin Jones
IV. The Impact of the Commerce Clause on Business
A. The Commerce Clause as a Source of Federal Authority
B. The Commerce Clause as a Restriction on State Authority
1. Nat’l Ass’n of Optometrists & Opticians v. Brown
V. The Taxing and Spending Powers of the Federal Government
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A. Taxation of the Internet?
2. Corporate Political Speech
B. The Fourth Amendment
1. United States v. Windsor
D. The Fourteenth Amendment
VII. Summary
Discussion Questions for Chapter Five
1. How are the supremacy clause and federal preemption related?
The supremacy clause is found in Article VI of the Constitution which provides that the
Constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States constitute the supreme law of the land. It
2. Explain why someone would say it’s true that the Commerce Clause allows Congress to
regulate almost anything that happens within states.
Some of the cases presented in the chapter show just how much power Congress has under
3. Explain the significance of the issue of Internet taxation.
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4. Evaluate this statement: The First Amendment protects all kinds of speech equally.
The First Amendment does not protect all kinds of speech equally. Some kinds of speech are
not protected at all, such as speech that incites a riot (yelling “Fire!” in a crowded theater).
5. Evaluate this statement: The Fourth Amendment applies to individuals, but not corporations.
The Fourth Amendment protects the rights of individuals to be secure in their persons, their
6. Explain relationships between procedural and substantive due process.
One relationship is that both are protected by the Fifth Amendment. They are two types of
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Answers to Critical Thinking about the Law, Case Summaries, and Answers
to Review Questions, Review Problems, and Case Problems
Suggested Answers to Critical Thinking about the Law Questions
1. If one branch of government became too strong, it could engage in behavior that would not
be in the best interest of citizens. Each branch was made independent of the others and was
2. The protection of unrestricted speech to citizens and businesses is consistent with the ethical
3. The business might suffer because a business manager would not have a full appreciation of
his or her rights as a corporate citizen. For instance, business managers need to know the
Case Summary—William Jefferson Clinton v. Paula Corbin Jones
This case is in the book to show the limits of presidential immunity. In this case, Defendant
Clinton sought to use presidential immunity to dismiss Paula Jones’ sexual harassment claim, or,
alternatively, to delay the proceedings until his term of office had expired. The U.S. Supreme
Court rejected Clinton’s argument. The Court reminded Clinton that the President does not have
Case Summary—Gonzales v. Raich
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The case is in the book to show how the U.S. Supreme Court interprets the Commerce
Suggested Answers to Critical Thinking about the Law Questions
1. Wickard is applied here because it deals with farming a product for personal consumption.
2. The Court acknowledges that illegal drugs are much more of a concern than farmed food. It
downplays the idea that the drug was not for sale, but rather for medicinal purposes.
Case Summary—Nat’l Ass’n of Optometrists & Opticians v. Brown
This case shows how California had a regulation that prohibited licensed opticians from
offering prescription eye-wear in the same city or location where professional eye examinations
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York
Suggested Answers to Critical Thinking about the Law Questions
1. The primary ethical norm implicit in the requirement that regulations on commercial speech
2. The Public Service Commission is concerned because Central Hudson holds a monopoly
over the sale of electricity in its service area. It is concerned that their advertising could
Case Summary—Florida v. Jardines
This case deals with the question of whether it is ethical to conduct searches without a
warrant. A detective received an unverified tip that marijuana was being grown in Jardines’
home. A month later, the Police Department and the Drug Enforcement Administration sent a
Case Summary—United States v. Windsor
Edith Windsor and Thea Spyer were legally married in Canada and moved to New York,
which recognizes same sex marriage. When Spyer died in 2009, she left her entire estate to
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Windsor, who sought to claim the federal estate tax exemption for surviving spouses but was
barred from doing so by Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which
amended the federal law that provides rules of construction for over 1,000 federal laws and all
Answers to Review Questions
5-1. The Supremacy Clause is the basis for the doctrine of federal preemption. The Supremacy
Clause says that the Constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States constitute the
5-2. The Commerce Clause provides the basis for most of the federal regulation of business
5-4. The courts have attempted to resolve the conflict over the impact of the Commerce
Clause on state regulation by distinguishing between regulations of commerce and
5-5. A regulatory taking occurs when a government regulation becomes so onerous as to
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5-6. In general, commercial speech enjoys less protection than private speech. That is because
it is expression solely related to the economic interests of the speaker and speaker’s
Answers to Review Problems
5-7. This law will be challenged under the first amendment. The challenge by the tobacco
industry will focus on the nature of the expression and the governmental interests served
5-8. Probably not. Ms. Crabtree suffered the loss of her job, but she was given a one year,
5-9. The landfill operators will say the state cannot make any law that impairs the obligations
of any person under a contract. This law affects their contracts with out-of-state waste
generators.
The state will argue that their law is reasonable, so it should be upheld. The state must
5-10. Under Braswell, Chen will have to comply with the subpoena. Because Chen has
5-11. No. Ricardo will not be able to argue that the regulation is so onerous as to constitute a
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5-12. The plaintiffs would say there has been a regulatory taking. They would be wrong. A law
Answers to Case Problems
5-13. This case is related to First Amendment rights. The Wilson twins were suspended from
school for creating a blog site which contained highly racist and sexually explicit
5-14. In this case the plaintiffs argue that they were discriminated against and when they filed a
complaint they were discharged from their duties. However, the court held that their
5-15. The circuit court of appeals reversed the district court and held that the law as drafted was
unconstitutional. The court concluded that although content neutral, the Indiana law was
not narrowly tailored to serve the state’s interest. It broadly prohibited substantial
protected speech rather than specifically targeting the evil of improper communications to
minors.
The court noted that Indiana continues to possess existing tools to combat sexual
5-16. The United States Supreme Court ruled that California’s law restricting minors’ access to
video games with violent content was unconstitutional. The Court noted that video games
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adjust the boundaries of an existing category of unprotected speech to ensure that a
5-17. The ordinance to ban pit bulls and other select dog breeds inside the city limits was ruled
by the Court to be constitutional. There is no fundamental constitutional right that
5-18. The court’s decision on the appeal was reasonable because the police used the GPS
5-19. The Kentucky Supreme Court reversed the court of appeals and vacated the appellant’s
5-20. In this case the plaintiff would not have been able to receive compensation other than
Thinking Critically about Relevant Legal Issues
1. The issue here is that corporations should be given the right to openly endorse a candidate,
3. There are misleading analogies that make it seem as though not allowing corporations to
The Legal Environment of Business: A Critical Thinking Approach
4. Corporations should not be allowed to speak about politics because they are not people.
They are made up of people with many different viewpoints. The company, to be fair, would