860
MACHINES CORP.
Opinion of the Court
have had a narrow focus, the remedial provision that ultimately became the Export Clause does not, and there is substantial evidence from the Debates that proponents of the Clause fully intended the breadth of scope that is evident in the language. See, e. g., 2 Farrand, Records of the Federal Convention, supra, at 220 (Mr. King: "In two great points the hands of the Legislature were absolutely tied. The importation of slaves could not be prohibited—exports could not be taxed"); id., at 305 ("Mr. Mason urged the necessity of connecting with the power of levying taxes . . . that no tax should be laid on exports"); id., at 360 (Mr. Elseworth [sic]: "There are solid reasons agst. Congs taxing exports"); ibid. ("Mr. Butler was strenuously opposed to a power over exports"); id., at 361 (Mr. Sherman: "It is best to prohibit the National legislature in all cases"); id., at 362 ("Mr. Gerry was strenuously opposed to the power over exports").
The Government argued for a different narrow interpretation of the Export Clause in Fairbank. See 181 U. S., at 292-293. Arguing that the Debates expressed a primary interest in diffusing sectional conflicts, the Government urged the Fairbank Court to interpret the Export Clause to permit taxation of "the act of exportation or the document evidencing the receipt of goods for export, for these exist with substantial uniformity throughout the country." Id., at 292. We rejected that argument:
"If mere discrimination between the States was all that was contemplated, it would seem to follow that an ad valorem tax upon all exports would not be obnoxious to this constitutional prohibition. But surely under this limitation Congress can impose an export tax neither on one article of export, nor on all articles of export." Ibid.
As in Fairbank, we think the text of the constitutional provision provides a better decisional guide than that offered by
Page: Index Previous 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007