Brandeis University
Politics Department
Politics 14b
Spring, 2001
Midterm Examination
Mar. 1, 2001
(50%) I. Write short essays on three of the following:
1. The Slaughterhouse Cases became important precedent in 14th amendment jurisprudence. How did Justice Miller's interpretation of the privileges and immunities, due process, and equal protection clauses help to shape 14th amendment litigation? Cite cases to illustrate your explanation.
2. United States v. Lopez was a landmark cases in commerce clause jurisprudence. How did the Court's opinion in Lopez reflect judicial activism that changed the judicial self-restraint of the late New Deal Court? Cite cases for illustration.
3. How did Chief Justice John Marshall interpret the Constitution in Marbury v. Madison and McCulloch v. Maryland? How did these cases reflect politics by other means?
4. John P. Roche and James Beard offer competing interpretations of the framing of the Constitution. What were the intentions of the Founding Fathers? Is original intent clear enough to guide constitutional interpretation? Is the Constitution a blueprint or a guide? Cite specific constitutional provisions to illustrate your answer.
5. "Politics by other means" describes many Supreme Court cases. Discuss the political dimensions of Court decisions that used substantive due process and other substantive constitutional interpretations to overrule state and congressional laws. As a guide refer to the cases in your text described as the judicial sources of major political controversies. Others can be used as well, for example Lochner v. New York.
(50%) II. Essay Question
James Madison asks you to write to Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson to straighten them out on the true meaning of the Constitution. Draft the letter explaining the Madisonian model of government as he outlines it in Federalist 47, 48, 51, and in Federalist 10. Where do Madison and Hamilton agree and disagree on the Constitution?
How does Jeffersonian republicanism agree or disagree with Madison and Hamilton?