The final articles of the Constitution, Articles 6 and 7, establish the Supremacy Clause, the oath requirement, the No Religious Test Clause, and the rules for ratifying the Constitution.

In Article 6, the Supremacy Clause says the Constitution and federal statutes always take priority over conflicting state laws. If the directives Congress enacts are authorized by the Constitution, they take priority over both the ordinary laws and constitution of each individual state. Courts are given the power through judicial review to examine actions of the government and declare when they are unconstitutional. The Constitution binds judges in every state, regardless of any state laws to the contrary.

This doesn’t mean state law always mirrors federal law. For example, federal income tax applies to everyone. But it’s left up to each state to decide on imposing a state income tax. Similarly, marijuana is regulated as a schedule 1 drug under federal law, but several states have now legalized it for recreational or medical use.

The tension between federal and state sovereignty has existed since the Founders drafted the Constitution. The basic principle that valid federal statutes preempt conflicting rules of state law is not controversial. But judicial opinions may differ about what counts as a “conflict” and when the Supremacy Clause is triggered.

Article 6 also establishes that treaties with other countries become law within the US. This was to ensure state actions could not undermine the intent of a treaty. For example, in 1783, the Treaty of Paris between the U.S. and Britain said that creditors who had financed the war could recover debts owed to them. Several states invoked debtor relief laws that would have violated the treaty. British diplomats argued that these violations excused Britain’s failure to withdraw all their armies and garrisons. The Supremacy Clause finally settled this by requiring state laws to adhere to terms of treaties.

Article 6 addresses important requirements that apply to members of Congress, the state legislatures, and all federal and state executive and judicial officers. All of these individuals must swear an oath or affirm that they will support the U.S. Constitution.

The No Religious Test Clause states that no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust. This was in response to English law, where religious tests were used to establish the Church of England as an official national church. These laws excluded Catholics and some Protestants from exercising political power. Inclusion of this clause in the U.S. Constitution was controversial. Some argued a person couldn’t be good without being Christian; others argued that men without principles would easily evade the law’s purpose through sham compliance, while honest men who followed the dictates of their conscience would be barred from office. Religious liberty and equality, essentially rejecting religious tests, has been affirmed under interpretations of First Amendment protections.

Article 7 established the process for ratifying the Constitution. The Articles of Confederation, the colonies’ first try at a constitution, required unanimous agreement to pass amendments. Since consensus was very difficult to achieve, the Articles were frequently violated. The framers realized this wasn’t workable for adopting the Constitution as the law of the land. In a more practical approach, they required ratification by nine of the 13 states. This enabled consensus without allowing a state to hold their vote to negotiate a better deal for themselves. Interestingly, including the Bill of Rights was one compromise made in order to ratify the Constitution! On June 21, 1788, New Hampshire became the ninth state to approve, ratifying the US Constitution as law.

Susan Walker is a member of Living Democracy: Engaging Citizens, a local citizen group. Our mission is to inform and educate the Mid-Ohio Valley about how government works on the local, state, and federal levels and how citizens can be involved to make our democracy work. Join us the third Monday of each month. livingdemocracymov@gmail.com and facebook/speak foryourselfvote and Youtube channel Living Democracy