Which cases have expanded the scope of the national government through broad interpretations of the commerce clause?

Answer 1

A great example of this would be the case of U.S. v. Lopez (1995). In this case, a high school student in Texas carried a concealed firearm onto his school campus. He was charged at the state level for having a firearm on school property. Then, the state charges were dropped and federal charges were filed claiming the student violated The Gun Free School Zones Act of 1990. The student was found guilty and sentenced to 6 months imprisonment and 2 years supervised release. So the question that was brought before the Supreme Court was whether or not the Guns Free School Zones Act of 1990 was unconstitutional because it doesn't have to do with Congress's ability to legislate under the Commerce Clause. Ultimately, the court ruled in a 5-4 decision that possession of a firearm in a local school zone is not an economic activity and therefore could not be a violation of the Commerce Clause.

Answer 2

Gibbons v. Ogden is the best example here. It reaffirmed the federal governments ability to regulate interstate commerce.