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McCulloch v. Maryland

Definition

A landmark Supreme Court case from 1819 that established two important principles in constitutional law. First, the Constitution grants Congress implied powers for implementing the Constitution's express powers, and second, state action may not impede valid constitutional exercises of power by the Federal government.

Analogy

Think of the federal government as a parent and the states as children. The parent has certain rules (express powers) they've set out for their kids to follow. But sometimes situations arise that weren't covered by those initial rules. In these cases, the parent can use their judgment (implied powers) to make decisions that still fall within their authority as a parent. And just like how a child can't overrule or interfere with their parent's decisions, states can't interfere with federal actions that are constitutionally valid.

Related terms

Implied Powers: Powers not explicitly named in the Constitution but assumed to exist due to their being necessary to implement the expressed powers.

Expressed Powers: Powers specifically named and given directly to the federal government by the US Constitution.

Federalism: A system of government where power is divided between a central authority (in this case, federal government) and constituent political units (states).