South Dakota v. Dole (1987): Supreme Court Cases Series | Academy 4 Social Change

Описание: The Court ruled in a 7-2 decision to uphold the National Minimum Drinking Age Amendment as within congressional spending powers. The Court decided that encouraging uniformity was a reasonable constitutional goal of the federal government, especially since it was in pursuit of the “general welfare.” The Court noted that youth traffic accidents were an interstate problem that warranted national solutions. Chief Justice William Rehnquist wrote that the Constitution gives Congress the power to “lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts, and Excises, to pay the Debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States.” Therefore, Rehnquist concluded that Congress may make federal funding conditional. Since South Dakota was only losing five percent of its total highway funds, the Court did not find it an undue burden.

**Find a transcript, lesson plans, worksheets, and more at: https://academy4sc.org/video/south-da...

**Think Further Questions
1. Do you think there was congressional overreach in enacting the National Minimum Drinking Age Amendment?
2. Why do you think the breakdown of justices, in this case, was not along ideological lines?
3. What do you think the minimum legal drinking age should be today?

**Contents
00:00 - Case
01:24 - Decision
02:32 - Dissent
02:56 - Impact

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