Title: Abortion & The Commerce Clause
Department: Government
Description: Abortion & The Commerce Clause will determine whether United States Supreme Court precedent enables state legislatures to restrict pregnant people from traveling out of state to obtain abortion services on a dual conceptual and applied framework. The project will first examine the extent to which constitutional precedent expands and/or constrains the Commerce Clause, with particular emphasis on Wickard v. Filburn, United States v. Lopez, Gonzalez v. Reich, and National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius. The project will then address the debate among lower courts about the scope of powers provided to Congress by the Commerce Clause, including the authority (or lack thereof) of state legislatures to prohibit pregnant women from traveling for "economic activity." As such, research topics must also include the Dormant Commerce Clause, the principle of a domestic free trade zone, abortion services, and the current makeup of the United States Supreme Court.
Hometown: Chesapeake, Virginia
Advisor: Christine Nemacheck
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