WSP05764 - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

GOJ220 -39- , , "Referonce has been made to the po1itico.1 situation of these St,.tes, anterior to its (Constitution) formation. It has been said that they v:ere sovereign, were complete- ly independent, and were connected with c; ch other only by a leaEue. Thi s is true." (Chi ef Justice Narshall in Gibbons v. Ogden, 9 Hheat" 1, 187). J "The United States are s ""ereign as to all the powers of Government actually surrendered, Each State in the Union is sovereign as to all the pOwers reserved. It must necessarily b e so, becau se the United States hove no claim to any authority but such as the Stntes have sL'rrenlered to them. Of course, the pe.rt not surrendered must remain as it did before." (Chisholm v. Georgia, 2 Dall., 419, 435). "In Americ2_ the pow rs of sovereignty are divided between the G<Ylernment of the Union and those of the Sto_tes. They are each sove."eign with respect to the objects committed to it, and neither sovereign with respect to the cbjects conmitted to the othar," (Chief Justice Marshall in l1cCulloch v. Haryland, 4,iheat. 316, 4l0), . "Under the Articles of Confederation each State re- tained its sovereignty, freedom, nnd independence, and every power, juri sdiction, and right not expressly dele- gated to the United States. Under the Constitution, though t he power s 0 l' t he States were much restricted, still all powers not delegated to the United States, nor prohibited to the St.t es, are reserved to the Ste.tes, res- pectively, or to the people. And we have already had occasion to remark at thi s term, that 'tt '0 people of each State compose a State, having its own government and en- dowed wi th all the functions essential to separate and independent existence,' and that 'without the States in union there cculd be no such political body as the United States. I Not only therefore can there be '10 loss of separate and independent autonomy to the States through their Union under the Constitution, but it may be not un- reo_soOlab1y said that the presQrvation of the States and the lIl!lintenance of their ,:overI>ments are as much within the design and care of the Consti tlltion as the preservation of the Union and the maintenance of' t he National GO'lernment, The Constitution, in all its provision~, looks to an indes- tructible Union, composed of indestructible States." (Chief Justice Chase in Texe,s v. "hite, 7 ,iallace, 700, 725, decided in 1868).