Mar Mad

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Mar Mad

Multiple Choice

Identify the letter of the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

Read the entire passage before you try to answer the questions

Background of Marbury v Madison

In 1800 the government of the United States was still new. None of the branches, legislative-executive-judicial, was sure of their authority. This was especially true of the Supreme Court. What authority did the Supreme Court have? What cases could they rule on? Could they tell the other branches what to do? Article III of the Constitution established the Supreme Court but it was not very specific about the authority the court had.

The President of the United States has the power to appoint judges to the federal courts. Usually, the President appoints individuals who are members of his own political party or who share his ideas about politics.

In 1800, John Adams was President. Adams was a Federalist who wanted a strong central government. There was an election that year. Thomas Jefferson, who belonged to another political party, got elected. Jefferson was an anti-Federalist who wanted the states to have more power. There were many positions in the federal government that were empty. Before he left office, President Adams tried to fill these positions with people who shared his ideas.

President Adams appointed 58 new people. He asked his Secretary of State, John Marshall, to deliver the paperwork to these people so they could start their new jobs. Marshall delivered most of the papers. He was in a hurry, so he left some of the papers for the new Secretary of State, James Madison, to deliver. When he came into office, President Thomas Jefferson told Madison not to deliver the papers to some of the people Adams had appointed.

One of the individuals who didn't receive his papers was William Marbury. He sued James Madison and tried to get the Supreme Court of the United States to issue a writ of mandamus. A writ is a court order that forces an official to do something. Marbury argued that a law passed by Congress (the Judiciary Act of 1789) gave the Supreme Court of the United States the power to issue this writ. If the Court issued the writ, Madison would have to deliver the papers. Then Marbury would become a justice of the peace.

Thomas Jefferson

James Madison

John Adams

Marbury based his argument on the Judiciary Act of 1789. What did he claim the Act did?

a.	allowed the Congress and the President to ignore the Supreme Court	c.	gave the Supreme Court the power to issue writs of mandamus
b.	forced one president to honor the acts of other presidents	d.	forced the President to make Federal court appointments

What was the political philosophy of Thomas Jefferson

a.	Federalist	c.	Anti-Federalist
b.	Constitutionalist	d.	Republican

What is a writ of mandamus?

a.	an appointment to the court made by the President	c.	an oath taken by all Federal employees to protect and defend the constitution
b.	an order issued by the court requiring someone to do something	d.	a requirement that the police produce a writ of habeas corpus

What was the political philosophy of John Adams?

a.	Democrat	c.	Anti-Federalist
b.	Republican	d.	Federalist

Who tried to block the appointments of President Adams, who was leaving office?

a.	Justice Marshall	c.	James Madison
b.	President Thomas Jefferson	d.	James Marbury

If the Supreme Court issued the writ of mandamus, Madison would be forced to deliver the commission to Marbury.

a.	false	c.	true
b.	no way to tell from the reading

Why did Marbury sue James Madison?

a.	Madison was Secretary of State and an Anti-Federalist	c.	Marbury did not like Madison
b.	Marbury was a Federalist	d.	As Secretary of State Madison was supposed to deliver the paperwork to Marbury

Under our political system, who has the power to appoint judges to the federal courts.

a.	the House of Representatives	c.	judges are elected not appointed
b.	the President	d.	the Supreme Court

What did William Marbury want the government to do.

a.	He wanted the Senate to force Jefferson to honor his appointment	c.	He wanted the Congress to force Jefferson to honor his appointment
b.	He wanted the Supreme Court to issue a writ of mandamus.	d.	He wanted the Supreme Court to issue a writ of habeas corpus

10.

An Act is a law passed by Congress.

a.	neither true nor false	c.	false
b.	both true and false	d.	true

11.

What job was William Marbury trying to get with the government?

a.	Congressman	c.	Army Captain
b.	Justice of the Peace (judge)	d.	Senator

The Supreme Court Ruling by John Marshall

The Supreme Court of the United States had to decide the case. The new Chief Justice of the United States was John Marshall. He was the same person who had been unable to deliver the paperwork in the first place!

The new chief justice, John Marshall, understood that if the Supreme Court issued a writ of mandamus (i.e., an order to force Madison to deliver the commission), the Jefferson administration would ignore it, and thus significantly weaken the authority of the courts. On the other hand, if the Court denied the writ, it might well appear that the justices had acted out of fear. Either case would be a denial of the basic principle of the supremacy of the law. Instead, Marshall found a common ground where the Court could chastise (scold) the Jeffersonians for their actions while enhancing the Supreme Court's power. His decision in this case has often been hailed as a judicial tour de force (a skillful decision showing power).

Marshall’s Decision

1. Marshall declared that Madison should have delivered the commission to Marbury.

2. Even though the Judiciary Act of 1789 (passed by Congress) gave the Supreme Court the power to issue writs of mandamus, Marshall said the Judiciary Act was wrong because it violated Article III of the Constitution

3. Because of the above two actions, Marshall ruled that the Supreme Court did not have the authority to issue the write of mandamus

So, while the case limited the court's power to issue writs in this case because it violated the Constitution, it greatly enhanced the Supreme Courts authority to say what was and what was not constitutional. From this point on the Supreme Court what have the authority to say what was constitutional.

Just as important, it emphasized that the Constitution is the supreme law of the land and that the Supreme Court is the arbiter and final authority of the Constitution. As a result of this court ruling, the Supreme Court became an equal partner in the government.

12.

If John Marshall issued a writ of mandamus, forcing Jefferson to deliver the papers that allowed Marbury to become justice of peace, what would Jefferson do in answer to the writ?

a.	most likely fire John Marshall from the Supreme Court	c.	most likely ignore the writ (order)
b.	resign from office	d.	most likely obey the writ (order)

13.

If Jefferson obeyed the court order it would _____ the court, if Jefferson ignored the court order it would _____ the court.

a.	weaken - strengthen	c.	do nothing to - have no effect on
b.	strengthen - weaken

14.

If the Supreme Court refused to issue the writ of mandamus it would .......

a.	allow Congress to outlaw the Supreme Court	c.	allow the President to outlaw the Supreme Court
b.	make the court look like it was not afraid of Jefferson or public opinion	d.	make the court look like it was afraid of Jefferson

15.

What basic principle was Justice Marshall most concerned with?

a.	That all branches of government, including the Constitution be equal parts of the government.	c.	That the Jeffersonians be defeated
b.	That Marbury get his commission as Justice of the Peach	d.	That the law (Constitution) be supreme over any person, party or branch of government

16.

How did the decisions of Justice Marshall make the Supreme Court stronger.

a.	He established the principle that only the Supreme Court could say what was and what was not constitutional	c.	He ruled that Marbury should get his commission
b.	He ruled that Jefferson had the right to withhold Marbury’s commission	d.	He established the principle that only the Congress could say what was and what was not constitutional

17.

What is an additional principle established by Justice John Marshall in the Marbury v Madison case.

a.	The Congress could pass laws (acts) that superceded the Constitution	c.	The Constitution is the supreme law of the United States
b.	The President was inferior to the Congress	d.	The Congress was inferior to the President

18.

What is an additional principle established by Justice John Marshall in the Marbury v Madison case?

a.	Congress has the right to pass laws that may contradict the Constitution	c.	Only the Supreme Court can determine what laws are constitutional or not
b.	The President could refuse to enforce laws that he felt were unconstitutional	d.	That the Federalists are right and the Anti-Federalists are wrong

19.

In the 2000 elections there was a great deal of debate and many law suits about the election outcome in Florida. Finally the Supreme Court ruled that both sides had to accept the decisions of the State of Florida, giving George Bush the election. When the Supreme Court made its ruling, both sides backed off and accepted the courts decision. Justice John Marshall’s ruling in Marbury v Madison made this possible.

a.	This statement is false	c.	There is no way to tell if this statement is true or false
b.	This statement is true

20.

Ours is a government of laws, not men

a.	This statement has no meaning	c.	This statement is true
b.	This statement is false	d.	There is no way to tell if the statement is true or false