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Aggregate effect: Jackson, Rehnquist, and the remaking of American federalism

Posted on:2014-05-10Degree:M.A.L.SType:Thesis
University:Georgetown UniversityCandidate:Travers, Ryan JFull Text:PDF
GTID:2455390005989712Subject:History
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
This thesis explores the influence Robert H. Jackson had in shaping William H. Rehnquist's Commerce Clause jurisprudence. Jackson and Rehnquist were two of the most influential Justices of the twentieth century and perhaps in the history of the United States Supreme Court. Their lives were similar in some ways --- both served in Presidential Administrations prior to joining the Court --- and yet, they were also divergent: Jackson was a lifelong Democrat, while Rehnquist was a Republican. Their views on the Commerce Clause, one of the most important sources of federal government power, also show some similarities and differences. Both were the authors of landmark Supreme Court decisions that defined the scope of the Commerce Clause and of the federal government. Jackson advocated the expansion of the Commerce Clause and wrote the opinion in Wickard v. Filburn, a case that significantly expanded the federal government's power; Rehnquist led the opinion in United States v. Lopez that curtailed that same commerce power, overturning a federal statute under the Commerce Clause for the first time since before Jackson joined the Court. Their lives would intersect during two years from 1951 until 1953 while Rehnquist served as a clerk under Jackson. This experience became one of the most important milestones in Rehnquist's life, as well as a source of significant controversy.;The forces of continuity and change press on the Supreme Court just as on other major political institutions. This thesis will address this significant reinterpretation of the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution and place it within the doctrines of stare decisis and judicial restraint, while arguing that changing circumstances and the personal relationship of Justices Jackson and Rehnquist contributed to a redirection in constitutional law in the United States. Jackson spent a significant portion of his career in Washington, DC advocating for the expansion of the Commerce Clause and generally continued to do so as a Justice. Rehnquist and Jackson had a difficult relationship during and after Rehnquist's clerkship. After he joined the Court as a Justice, Rehnquist generally sought to restrain the power of the federal government and eventually did so in United States v. Lopez. This thesis argues that Rehnquist's Lopez decision is not a repudiation of Jackson's philosophy; rather, it complements that philosophy and illustrates the impact Jackson's influence --- along with others --- had in shaping Rehnquist's jurisprudence and the Lopez decision.
Keywords/Search Tags:Jackson, Rehnquist, Commerce clause, Federal, United states, Lopez, ---
PDF Full Text Request
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