Article VI and VII of the Constitution

Directions: Use 3-5 minutes to double check this subject’s Power School for your class grade and work listings verifying that all work is caught up. Read and heed embedded messages. Next, research your part of the following topics and figure out answers to the questions. Write your questions and detailed answers on lined paper or your notebook paper. These questions and related answers are required to be handed in, once the class discussion is completed. You are expected to use the time completely, be through and become knowledgeable. Write down any puzzles you have related to the material on your paper and bring them up during the class discussion. Warning: If you are found to be using your research time for other things, it will hurt your learning and grade. If you think or claim to be done, you are not! Once your assigned part is ready, then help others on your team or study the test resources from Mr. Spitzer’s web page for the upcoming test. No games, non-topic talk or other activities allowed during research time. The class will research as much as time allows before team sharing and whole class discussion. Since there is always more to learn, Mr. Spitzer encourages you to look into this topic more on your own time. Your class work grade includes: 1. Entire use of time while researching. 2. Answer questions & pay attention during team sharing. 3. Paying attention & participate during class discussion. 4. Turning in your readable questions & notes. Team members who do not do their share, provide hasty sloppy answers, disrupt others and use time ineffectively in the four grade aspects will be removed from the team and required to write out and turn in all answers on their own for the grade.

Topics to Research:

Questions to be able to discuss

  1. What does it mean that the national government is a government of delegated powers? What are the three general types of delegated powers?
  2. What are expressed powers to the Constitution? Find most of them in Article I, Section 8 and report them to the class. Check also Article II, Section 2 for more to report. Finally report those found in Article III and some of the Amendments such as 16th.
  3. What are the implied powers to the Constitution? Read Article I, Section 8, Clause 18. What does necessary and proper mean? Give some examples of the exercise of these elastic clause powers by the national government.
  4. What are the inherent powers to the Constitution? Give a listing of major inherent powers exercised by the national government.
  5. What are the denied powers to the national government? List some of the expressly denied powers as specified in the Constitution. Check Article I, Section 9 and Amendments # 1-8 for many of these.
  6. What are the implied denied powers to the national government? List some the implied denied powers to the national government. What are the denied powers to the national government because of the federal system itself? Why is the national government not allowed to tax states and local governments?
  7. What are exclusive powers of the national government? Give examples of some of these exclusive powers.
  8. What are the concurrent powers of the national and state governments? Give examples of these concurrent powers that are shared.
  9. What are the reserved powers to the states and people? Read to the class the language of Amendment 10. List some of the examples of reserved powers that states have. Also specify the one state expressed power as mentioned in Amendment 21, section 2.
  10. What are the denied powers to the states? List the denied powers as given in Article I Section 10. Why are these powers denied to the states?
  11. Read to the class the wording in Article VI, Section 2 about the Supremacy Clause. Now say what this means in your own words. Why has this clause been called the “linchpin of the Constitution”?
  12. Use the following court cases to explain how the Constitution is maintained as the supreme law of the land. Also explain for each the issue involved and the court’s decision. Marbury v. Madison, Gibbons v. Ogden, McCulloch v. Maryland
  13. What does the Constitution specify related to approval of the Constitution? Read from Article VII the exact language. What was the basic issue in the fight for ratification of the Constitution?
  14. Explain the arguments of the Federalists favoring ratification of the Constitution. Explain the arguments of the Anti-Federalists urging rejection of the Constitution.
  15. Why might the failure of New York and Virginia to ratify have doomed the Constitution? What promise did the Federalists made, and later keep, that helped win the ratification battles? What were the essays supporting ratification that helped swing the battle in New York? How are these essays still vital to our nation today?

Critical Thinking

  1. Why are the reserved powers so broad? How well does Michigan do in the exercise of these reserved powers? Explain.
  2. Why was the Constitution ratification controversial? Explain in the context of the time period.
  3. Identify several public issues in Buckley that you think are best handled locally, not by the Federal Government. Explain.
  4. Why do you think the Framers thought it necessary to include the Supremacy Clause in the Constitution? Why was the 10th Amendment added? Explain.
  5. Check recent and current news for three to five examples that illustrate powers of the national government. Do the same for powers reserved to the states. Explain. Also explain how these state and national powers affect you and Buckley.