1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:04,040 Speaker 1: Hi, everyone, Welcome to this Day in History class, where 2 00:00:04,080 --> 00:00:21,200 Speaker 1: we uncover the remnants of history every day. Today is February. 3 00:00:22,480 --> 00:00:28,720 Speaker 1: The day was February oh three. The landmark US Supreme 4 00:00:28,760 --> 00:00:33,440 Speaker 1: Court case William Marbury versus James Madison, Secretary of the State, 5 00:00:34,120 --> 00:00:39,400 Speaker 1: was decided. The decision established judicial review, or the idea 6 00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:42,720 Speaker 1: that the actions of the executive and legislative branches of 7 00:00:42,760 --> 00:00:48,040 Speaker 1: government are subject to review by the judiciary. It also 8 00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:51,360 Speaker 1: ruled that the Supreme Court had the power to determine 9 00:00:51,640 --> 00:00:56,160 Speaker 1: if those actions were consistent with the Constitution, and if 10 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:59,800 Speaker 1: they were not consistent, then the Court could declare them void. 11 00:01:01,240 --> 00:01:05,759 Speaker 1: Many state courts already exercised judicial review by the tom 12 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 1: Marbury versus Madison was decided, and there had already been 13 00:01:10,120 --> 00:01:13,840 Speaker 1: talked of giving this power to the federal courts. But 14 00:01:14,120 --> 00:01:17,880 Speaker 1: this case helped establish the judiciary as equal to the 15 00:01:17,920 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 1: executive and legislative branches in power, and the decision established 16 00:01:23,680 --> 00:01:26,840 Speaker 1: the Constitution as the supreme law of the land, with 17 00:01:26,959 --> 00:01:30,320 Speaker 1: the Supreme Court as the ultimate authority for interpreting it. 18 00:01:31,560 --> 00:01:35,520 Speaker 1: The presidential election of eighteen hundred had been a dramatic one. 19 00:01:36,520 --> 00:01:42,000 Speaker 1: Democratic Republican Thomas Jefferson narrowly beat incumbent President John Adams, 20 00:01:42,240 --> 00:01:47,240 Speaker 1: who was a federalist. Democratic Republicans were also set to 21 00:01:47,280 --> 00:01:50,640 Speaker 1: become the majority party in both the House of Representatives 22 00:01:50,680 --> 00:01:54,440 Speaker 1: and the Senate, so as Adams was on his way out, 23 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:58,480 Speaker 1: he and Congress passed the Judiciary Act of eighteen o one. 24 00:01:59,720 --> 00:02:03,440 Speaker 1: The i'd created a bunch of new judicial offices, and 25 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: Adams proceeded to pack those offices with Federalists and what 26 00:02:08,120 --> 00:02:11,680 Speaker 1: appeared to be a last dig atempt to strengthen Federalist 27 00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:17,040 Speaker 1: power and thro Jefferson for a loop. Adams appointed sixteen 28 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:20,760 Speaker 1: new circuit judges and forty two new Justices of the Peace, 29 00:02:21,120 --> 00:02:27,359 Speaker 1: including William Marbury. The Senate approved the so called Midnight appointees, 30 00:02:27,919 --> 00:02:31,000 Speaker 1: and Adams signed a slew of commissions for the new judges. 31 00:02:32,360 --> 00:02:36,440 Speaker 1: Secretary of State John Marshall, who had been appointed Chief Justice, 32 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:41,600 Speaker 1: notorized the appointments. The kicker is several of those commissions 33 00:02:41,720 --> 00:02:46,040 Speaker 1: weren't delivered before the presidential transition, and the remaining appointments 34 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:49,560 Speaker 1: weren't valid until they were delivered by the new Secretary 35 00:02:49,600 --> 00:02:54,800 Speaker 1: of State, James Madison, and once President Jefferson took office 36 00:02:54,840 --> 00:02:58,480 Speaker 1: on March fourth, eighteen o one, he told Madison not 37 00:02:58,760 --> 00:03:03,399 Speaker 1: to deliver the commissions. William Marbury, who had been appointed 38 00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:05,920 Speaker 1: a Justice of the Peace in the District of Columbia, 39 00:03:06,440 --> 00:03:11,160 Speaker 1: was one of those leftover appointees, so Marbury petitioned the 40 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:15,400 Speaker 1: Supreme Court to get Madison to deliver the commission, asking 41 00:03:15,440 --> 00:03:18,760 Speaker 1: the Court for a writ of mandamus forcing delivery of 42 00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:22,960 Speaker 1: the commissions. A writ of mandamus is in order from 43 00:03:22,960 --> 00:03:26,240 Speaker 1: a court to a public agency or governmental body that 44 00:03:26,400 --> 00:03:30,000 Speaker 1: commands that entity to perform an act required by law 45 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:34,040 Speaker 1: that it has refused or neglected to do. The Court 46 00:03:34,160 --> 00:03:37,480 Speaker 1: did rule that Jefferson and Madison were in the wrong 47 00:03:37,600 --> 00:03:41,680 Speaker 1: for refusing to deliver the commission, but it also didn't 48 00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:45,640 Speaker 1: make Madison handover the commission. The Court claimed that it 49 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:48,520 Speaker 1: did not have jurisdiction in the case and it could 50 00:03:48,600 --> 00:03:52,120 Speaker 1: not issue the writ as the Judiciary Act of seventeen 51 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:54,960 Speaker 1: eighty nine that had authorized the Court to do so 52 00:03:55,400 --> 00:04:00,480 Speaker 1: was unconstitutional and therefore void. The Judiciary are the Act 53 00:04:00,520 --> 00:04:04,000 Speaker 1: of seventeen eighty nine. Chief Justice John Marshall pointed out 54 00:04:04,560 --> 00:04:09,240 Speaker 1: extended judiciary power beyond that given an Article three, Section 55 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:14,280 Speaker 1: two of the Constitution. Chief Justice John Marshall wrote the 56 00:04:14,360 --> 00:04:19,520 Speaker 1: unanimous opinion. In it, he said the following. It is 57 00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:22,719 Speaker 1: emphatically the province and duty of the Judicial Department to 58 00:04:22,760 --> 00:04:25,960 Speaker 1: say what the law is. Those who applied the rule 59 00:04:26,040 --> 00:04:31,200 Speaker 1: to particular cases must of necessity expound and interpret that rule. 60 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:35,040 Speaker 1: If two laws conflict with each other, the Court must 61 00:04:35,080 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 1: decide on the operation of each. So Section thirteen of 62 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:43,120 Speaker 1: the Judiciary Act of seventeen eighty nine was void and 63 00:04:43,160 --> 00:04:45,799 Speaker 1: Marbury didn't get his seat as Justice of the Peace 64 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:50,279 Speaker 1: in the District of Columbia. The Judiciary's job was to 65 00:04:50,360 --> 00:04:54,880 Speaker 1: uphold the Constitution. The decision said. Thus, the Supreme Court 66 00:04:55,000 --> 00:04:59,040 Speaker 1: gained the ability to declare a law unconstitutional, and judicial 67 00:04:59,080 --> 00:05:03,440 Speaker 1: review was born. I'm Eve Stepcote and hopefully you know 68 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:06,640 Speaker 1: a little more about history today than you did yesterday. 69 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:11,680 Speaker 1: You can find us on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook at 70 00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:17,000 Speaker 1: T d i h C Podcast. Thanks for joining me 71 00:05:17,080 --> 00:05:20,039 Speaker 1: on this trip through time. See you here in the 72 00:05:20,120 --> 00:05:21,719 Speaker 1: exact same spot tomorrow.