1. American Government
Chapter 11 Notes

2. Congressional Power
Congress only has those powers delegated to it by the Constitution.
The powers of Congress are categorized in 3 areas:
Expressed powers – written in the Constitution
Implied Powers – by reasonable deduction from the expressed powers
Inherent Powers – those powers typically set aside for national governments

3. Strict v. Liberal Constructionists
Much of the early conflict in U.S. politics centered on the powers of Congress.
The strict constructionists were led by Thomas Jefferson; they believed that Congress should only be able to exercise the expressed powers and those implied powers absolutely necessary to carry out the expressed powers.
The liberal constructionists were led by Alexander Hamilton; they favored a very liberal interpretation of the powers given to Congress.

4. Expressed Powers
Most of the expressed powers are found in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution.
There are 18 separate clauses and 27 different powers explicitly given to Congress.
The Constitution gives Congress the power to tax; however, Congress’ power to tax is NOT unlimited.
Congress cannot tax church services
Congress cannot implement a poll tax
Congress may tax only for public, not private, purposes.
Congress may NOT tax exports.
Taxes must be levied at the same rate in all states

5. Expressed Powers Borrowing Power
Commerce Power – power to regulate trade
Currency Power
Foreign Relations Power – act on matters of national security (immigration and measures to combat terrorism)
War Powers – war and national defense – Only Congress can declare war!
Naturalization

6. Expressed Powers Postal Power Copyrights and Patents
Weights and Measures – absolute need for accurate, uniform gauges of time, distance, area, weight, volume, etc.
Judicial Powers – create all federal courts below the Supreme Court and define federal crimes and punishments for violations of federal law

7. Implied Powers
The Constitutional basis for the implied powers is found in one of the expressed powers “Necessary and Proper Clause”
McCulloch v. Maryland 1819
Congress created Second Bank of the United States
There was a branch of the Second Bank in Baltimore, Maryland
State of Maryland placed a tax on all bank notes issued by banks not chartered in the state of Maryland
James McCulloch was the bank’s head cashier – he purposely issued notes on which no tax was paid

8. McCulloch v. Maryland 1819 (continued)
The state of Maryland sued James McCulloch
The U.S. appealed to the Supreme Court on his behalf
Maryland argued that the creation of the bank was unconstitutional
The Supreme Court sided with McCulloch – the creation of the Second Bank was ‘necessary and proper’ based on the expressed powers give to Congress of: taxing, borrowing, currency, and commerce.

9. Non-Legislative Powers
Electoral Duties
House of Representatives may be called upon to elect a President if no candidate receives a majority of the electoral votes
It chooses between the 3 highest contenders, and each state gets one vote – majority wins
Constitutional Amendments
Congress may propose an amendment to the Constitution with a 2/3 vote in each house of Congress

10. Non-Legislative Powers
Impeachment
The Constitution provides that the President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the U.S. may be removed from office thru impeachment.
The House has the sole power to impeach, or accuse or bring charges – only a majority vote is required
The Senate serves as the judge and jury. There must be a 2/3 majority in the Senate to convict. The penalty for conviction is removal from office.

11. Impeachment of Presidents
Only 2 Presidents have been impeached:
Andrew Johnson in 1868
Bill Clinton in 1998
Both were acquitted, or found not guilty by the Senate
Richard Nixon resigned in the face of almost certain impeachment in the Watergate Scandal. He resigned in 1974.

12. What was Watergate?
A June, 1972 attempt by Republican operatives to break in to the Democratic Party’s national headquarters in the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C.
President Nixon had ignored several subpoena requests for tape recordings of Watergate-related conversations in the Oval Office.
It was apparent that the House would impeach him and that the Senate would convict him. Facing almost certain impeachment, Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974.