Well, Darby was incorrectly decided, and Justice Stone is wrong. The 10th Amendment was added for a reason, and that reason was to further prevent the federal government from overstepping its enumerated powers in the Constitution.Sorry, but I have to agree with TexTushHog on this.
I'm amused by lawyers who think they are so far above the average person, and only they can understand the law. That's partly why I'm out of the profession. Can't take arrogant bastards anymore. Originally Posted by CuteOldGuy
The 10th Amendment is true, but it is also redundant. The text is short:
"The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."
The federal government is a government of enumerated powers. Unless a power is spelled out in the Constitution, the federal government doesn't have it. That power instead belongs to the states (assuming its not prohibited by the Constitution) or to the people. That is the way the Supreme Courts have interpreted laws and acts of Congress right from the start.
If Congress cannot find support for a law in the text of the Constitution, then Congress does not have that power - i.e., it is not "enumerated". You don't even have to cite the 10th Amendment to overturn the law.
The 10th Amendment doesn't really add anything to correct construction of the Constitution.