In his writing, “Common-law courts in a Civil-law system,” former Associate Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia debates the fundamental question: how should judges interpret the Constitution? Scalia believes that the judge’s objective in interpreting a statute is to give effect to “the intent of the legislature.” However, a moral interpretation would be a better judgment of the Constitution by allowing judges to apply the Constitution to modern moral standards.

The United States has long grappled with racial conflict. A critical Supreme Court case that determined African Americans’ legal status was Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857). The enslaved Dred Scott sued for his freedom when his master took him from Missouri, a slave state, to Wisconsin, a free state, and back. Chief Justice Roger Taney’s majority opinion proclaimed that because African Americans were not intended to be U.S. citizens by the Constitution, they could not sue in federal court, ruling in Sandford’s favor. Major debates in the case pertained to three provisions: whether African Americans have the potential for U.S. citizenship or federal trials, which legislative bodies could regulate slavery and whether slaves were property, and whether granting a slave freedom deprives his owner of due process for his property. The Supreme Court should have ruled in favor of Dred Scott because the Constitution does not deny citizenship or federal trials to African Americans. The unconstitutionality of the Missouri Compromise proves slaves are not property, and subjecting Dred Scott to slavery upon return to Missouri deprives him of his liberty without due process.

The recent passing of the Work and Mobility Bill in the Massachusetts House legislature, has inspired legal debates over whether or not undocumented immigrants should be able to obtain a driver’s license. This article argues that due to several Human Rights violations and civil rights violations, this bill should be passed everywhere in the U.S.. Evidence from similar bills indicates that this Act will increase safety and security on the roads. Moreover, the license would not allow undocumented immigrants to gain anything other than the legal ability to drive, countering concerns over whether the Act may facilitate unconstitutional voting.