The First Bank of the US was located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Chat with our AI personalities
This is not necessarily a law, but the most common example of the "Elastic Clause" being used would have to be the First Bank of the United States. Congress created the charter that would go to establish the Bank of the United States and some politicians protested against this charter stating that Congress did not have the authority to create the Bank of the United States. But with this Elastic Clause, Congress could do anything they deemed "necessary and proper" and thus they were allowed to create this charter. This is not necessarily a law, but the most common example of the "Elastic Clause" being used would have to be the First Bank of the United States. Congress created the charter that would go to establish the Bank of the United States and some politicians protested against this charter stating that Congress did not have the authority to create the Bank of the United States. But with this Elastic Clause, Congress could do anything they deemed "necessary and proper" and thus they were allowed to create this charter.
The Elastic Clause gives Congress the freedom to do what they must to carry out its power. Two historic uses of the Elastic Clause came with the establishment of the National Bank and also with the Louisiana Purchase.
The ''elastic clause" of congress would be the last paragraph in the 8th section of the constitution.It says:"To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this constitution in the government of the united states,or in any department or officer thereof." This was often used by the "loose constructionists" or the federalists to do something not in the constitution, like create a national bank. The democratic-republicans were called ''strict constructionists" because they said the government could only create things like a bank if it was in the constitution.
It is called the elastic clause because it is elastic, in a figurative sense, it is written in a way that as times change and things in the world are different, parts to the clause, and whole constitution its self can be changed. But remember that to actually change or edit the constitution takes a lot of political power, not just one person can decide that there should be another amendment.
The 'necessary and proper' clause is an expressed power that gives way to an implied power. The federal government to use it to justify acts that are not specifically sanctioned in the Constitution.