What does it mean in Article VI when it says the constitution is the "supreme law of the land"?

Answer 1

It is the supreme law over all other laws (city, state, etc.) and it always has last say. All other laws and regulations of the country must agree with it.

Answer 2

The full text of the relevant section is: "This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding."

It establishes a hierarchy, where some laws preempt others.

At the top is the US Constitution. What is says goes. And what it says, explicitly or implicitly, is determined by interpretation by federal courts, and ultimately the US Supreme Court.

Next down in the hierarchy, federal laws and international treaties that have been ratified by the Senate. These are co-equal, with the last enacted having priority if there are conflicts. These laws and treaties cannot do anything prohibited by the Constitution, but they can override (preempt) any lesser laws.

Next down, executive orders and executive agreements, similar to treaties except that they have not been ratified by the Senate. The comment by "jaxwizz" that the president cannot make laws is technically incorrect. Executive orders are valid regulatory laws for any department that is solely within the executive branch, and executive agreements are valid where they apply only to interaction with foreign governments. However, in both cases, the executive orders and agreements are very limited in their scope.

At the bottom there is another tree (50+ actually), starting with each state's constitutions and under that each state's laws. These laws are interpreted by the appropriate state courts, including each state's supreme court.

The original model arguably dealt only with the difference between federal law and state law, saying that federal preempts state if there is a conflict. By the pure text of Article VI, the constitution itself is co-equal with all federal laws and treaties.

However, as a practical matter, since Article V sets forth the only means by which the Constitution can be amended, any federal laws that would conflict with the Constitution must be invalid. That's because merely enacting federal law cannot change the constitution, so there would be two laws in conflict, and the one that's easier to change would have less legal weight.

Answer 3

No other law can supercede, set aside or replace the Consititution of the United States. But international treaties we have signed are also part of the Supreme Law of the Land, which presupposes that we can't legally sign any treaty that conflcts with our Constitution.

For example, the Constitution authorizes the Congress to enact legislation. Recently, a US magistrate, slapped down one of our President's policies on the grounds that the President of the United States has no authority to make laws. The Constitution reserves that right to the Congress.

The judge obviously understands the Constitution. The President obviously does not.

Who should you trust?

Respectfully submitted,

Adastra, the Wizzard of Jacksonville

Answer 4

A constitution is always the supreme law, to which other laws must comport. (In Europe, European Union law and the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms arguably have that status, subject to the sovereign powers of member and signatory states -- a moot point since no member state would likely repudiate them)
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However, the US Constitution uses the term "supreme law" rather loosely, and gives treaty commitments that status too, which they don't havfe, and courts don't give it to them. Congress can pass a law inconsistent with a pre-existent treaty, and the prior law will be deemed abrogated entirely or in part.

Some laws passed by Congress have "supreme law" status -- but still less so than the Constitution. I should think that the Organic Acts of territories such as Puerto Rico and (prior to 1946) the Philippines would have that status.

Answer 5

Whatever is said in the Constitution is the law that is to be followed by every citizen of the country and no one has the power to override it!!

Answer 6

This means that nobody is above the law. No govorment official or citizen or alien. It is the supreme law and nothing or no one is above it.

Answer 7

it means that any law that does not meet the stipulations set forth in the constitution is not valid


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