Transcript
February 28, 2011. The U.S. Constitution creates a federal government of limited enumerated powers. One of those powers is the regulation of interstate commerce. The scope of the power has changed over time. In Schechter Poultry Corp v. United States, the Court held that the federal government could not outlaw the sale of sick chickens if those chickens were not sold across state lines. However, seven years later, in Wickard v. Filburn, the Court held that a farmer's growing of wheat to feed his cattle affected interstate commerce, because by growing wheat, he no longer had to purchase wheat from the larger interstate market. See also United States v. Lopez, United States v. Morrison, and Gonzales v. Raich.
Fart Jokes
Professor Fluffybottom: Mr. Lop, can you reconcile Wickard v.
Filburn's understanding of interstate
commerce with the Schechter case?
Negligent Lop is playing Robot Unicorn Attack on his laptop.
Negligent Lop: Uh ...
End of panel.
Negligent Lop: Yes ... if I could just check
my notes, uh ... so Wickard
is really about wheat ...
Negligent Lop: ... fed to cows. Wheat fed to cows.
End of panel.
Negligent Lop: And cows fart! Big interstate farts.
End of panel.
Negligent Lop: Schechter Poultry, on the other
hand, was about chickens.
End of panel.
Negligent Lop: What is chicken?
Negligent Lop: A bird with farts that have
only a de minimis impact on
interstate commerce.
End of panel.
Professor Fluffybottom (off-panel): Um ... just so you know, it's
okay to pass when you
haven't done the reading.
Negligent Lop: But I did do the reading!
End of comic.
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