Paper Summary:

This paper examines the basic underlying principles of the economic powers granted by the United States Constitution to Congress, as well as some of the more essential specific enumerated powers. These powers are described as being numerous and varied, with far-reaching and often complex implications and effects. Additionally, the paper considers the language of the Constitution regarding these powers, noting that it is fairly straightforward, but still bears careful consideration. Various amendments to the Constitution are analyzed as they relate to monetary policy. The paper also notes how creating a centralized government authority that involved monetary policy was an issue of debate when Congress was founded. Next, the paper discusses the many changes to the implications and applications of Congress' economic policies over the two-and-a-quarter centuries since the Constitution was written. The paper concludes by stating that . although Congress was established primarily for the purposes of maintaining security and harmonious prosperity, its financial clout, and that of the federal government in general, has increased dramatically over the centuries.


Outline:

Section I: Introduction
Section II: Actual Wording
Section III: Founding Contexts
Section IV: Social, Political, and Economic Developments
Section V: Judicial Developments
Section VI: Meaning for Administrative Practice
Section VII: Summary

From the Paper:

"As a part of the original seven Articles of the United States' Constitution, the economic powers granted to Congress in Section 8 of Article 1 were composed during the Constitutional Convention of 1787 after a great deal of debate and deliberation. As Christopher Collier notes in Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787, the very establishment of Congress was itself a matter of great debate, let alone the determination of the actual powers it was granted (Collier 1987, pp. 132-4). The necessity of creating a central government much stronger than that which had existed under the Articles of Confederacy, as argued by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay in the Federalist Papers, contained many of the economic arguments raised at the Constitutional Convention, as will be seen in greater detail in the following section."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Avalon Project. (2008). "The Federalist Papers." Yale Law School. Accessed 30 July 2009. http://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/fed.asp
• Collier, C. (1987). Decision in Philadelphia: The Constitutional Convention of 1787. new York: Ballantine.
• Legal Information Institute. The U.S. Constitution. Cornell University Law School. Accessed 30 July 2009. http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/index.html
• Reed, A. (2009). "Teens arrested in counterfeiting case." WCNC.com. 10 July. Accessed 30 July 2009. http://www.wcnc.com/news/local/stories/wcnc-071009-sjf-counterfeitingkids.29ec86a9.html
• Terrell, E. (2004). "History of the US income tax." Library of Congress. Accessed 30 July 2009. http://www.loc.gov/rr/business/hottopic/irs_history.html

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