Yet another example of Congress attempting to overstretch the Interstate Commerce Clause. This is almost as ridiculous as the previous federal law prohibiting rape, made on the grounds that rape discourages victims from pursuing interstate commerce. Congress is clearly overstepping its bounds here, as it has done on so many other occasions under this clause.
I completely agree that the 'interstate commerce' clause (power to regulate commerce among the states) has been ridiculously overstretched.
However, recently the Rehnquist Court has begun to overturn the precedent that Congress can regulate anything that remotely affects or has to do with commerce.
In United States v. Lopez, the Supreme Court ruled that Congress has only the power to regulate:
(1) the channels of commerce,
(2) the instrumentalities of commerce, and
(3) action that substantially affects interstate commerce.
This is still too broad, but it's definitely better than the New Deal nonsense we had in place before.
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