1.  McCulloch v. Maryland, available online
 
Congress may exercise powers that can be implied from its enumerated authority in Article I of the Constitution.  The Constitution and laws based upon it are supreme over conflicting state laws.
 
2.  United States v. Lopez, available online
 
Informal political forces more than formal constitutional and legal prescriptions shape intergovernmental relations. Formally, American federalism is symbolized by a three-layer cake, representing national, state, and local governmental levels. However, a more accurate image is a marble cake that mixes and often inseparably mingle colors. Shared rather than divided governmental functions characterize American federalism.
 
3. United States v. Morrison, page 88
 
The Constitution creates a federal government of enumerated powers that Congress cannot exceed.  Congress does not have the authority under the commerce clause to enact the Violence Against Women Act which provided that "[all] persons within the United States shall have the right to be free from crimes of violence motivated by gender." Gender-motivated crimes of violence are not economic activity that Congress can regulate under the commerce clause. Nor can Congress sustain the legislation under its Fourteenth Amendment enforcement authority which applies only to state action. 

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GOVT 2305  American Government and Politics
Cathedral High School, El Paso, Texas
Last updated:  August 2005