Question

Why must federal legislation that affects business be based on an expressed constitutional grant of authority?

A. Because the U.S. Congress passed a law to that effect.
B. Because the federal government has only those powers granted to it by the Constitution.
C. Because the President Lincoln issued an executive order to that effect.
D. Because President Washington issued an executive order to that effect.
E. Because it is a custom.

Answer 1

The answer is: b. Because the federal government has only those powers granted to it by the Constitution.

The constitution provide the government with two type of powers:

- The powers that directly stated in the constitution (expressed power) and

The powers that does not explicitly stated in the constitution but still allowed to do by the government (implied power)

The expressed power of the constitution is exclusively belong to the federal government while the implied power is belong to the states government. Because of this, federal government cannot make federal legislation that is not based on expressed constitutional grant of authority?