Penny Thoughts: Constitutional history is the real history of America
Most Americans are not familiar with the history of cases which have been decided by the United States Supreme Court. Those cases not only reflect the general attitudes and conditions in America at the time of the decisions, but they also define and set the Constitutional boundaries of America’s history as the Nation moves onward.
The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg has prompted the expected protests and riots which have become the hallmark of the anarchist movements such as ANTIFA and BLM prompted by the vitriolic language of the Democratic party. More than that, however, America has been blessed to have had a significant number of Justices who have had the wisdom and vision in keeping America on point in maintaining its founding principles and ideals.
Presently, we are focused on the nomination of Justice Amy Coney Barrett an accomplished Appellate Court jurist who will continue the tradition of great Constitutional scholars. While we have been endowed with a plethora of Constitutional scholars who have served on the Supreme Court Bench, it has been the significant decisions that they have rendered which have been both a reflection of and a beacon for America.
Reviewing some of the memorable, if not landmark, decisions we see that they have clarified the Constitutional limits of each branch of government, as well as the practical functions and practices of the American society.
These selected cases and their impactful decisions are summarized as follows:
- Marbury v. Madison (1803)
The Court concluded that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judicial branch to say what the law is.
- McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
The Court determined that Congress has implied powers that allow it to create a national bank, even though the Constitution does not explicitly state that power.
- Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)
The Court determined that the commerce clause of the Constitution grants the federal government the power to determine how interstate commerce is conducted.
- Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857)
The Court decided that Dred Scott was not a “citizen of the state” so they had no jurisdiction in the matter, but the majority opinion also stated that Dredd Scott was not a free man.
- Schenck v. United States (1919)
The Court ruled that the freedom of speech protection afforded in the First Amendment could be restricted if the words spoken or printed represented to society a “clear and present danger.”
- Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
The Court decided that state laws requiring separate but equal schools violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.
- Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)
The Court unanimously ruled that the Sixth Amendment requires state courts to provide attorneys for criminal defendants who cannot otherwise afford counsel, better known as “the right to counsel”.
- Miranda v. Arizona (1966)
The Court decided that police must take proper steps to inform persons being arrested of their Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights.
- Roe v. Wade (1973)
The Court invalidated any state laws that prohibited first trimester abortions.
- Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission (2010)
The Court held that the free speech clause of the First Amendment prohibits the government from restricting independent expenditures for political communications by corporations, including nonprofit corporations, labor unions, and other associations.
A critical review of these cases and decisions reveals that their Constitutional clarifications have addressed issues from the duties of each of the three branches of government to our institutional operations and our societal behaviors.
Understanding this history allows a deeper appreciation of the significance of the Supreme Court beyond all the noise surrounding the most recent nomination.
In short, the history of the United States is, in fact, the succession of the decisions rendered by our Supreme Court, for that is where the very definition of what the Constitution means and who America really is.