Which constitutional clause enables the incorporation of the Bill of Rights to apply to the states?

• A. The Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
• B. The Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment
• C. The Supremacy Clause
• D. The Commerce Clause

Answer: (B)

The mechanism used to apply the Bill of Rights to state governments is the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. Through a process called selective incorporation, the Supreme Court has held that most of the rights protected by the Bill of Rights are fundamental liberties that states must respect, so those federal guarantees bind the states as well. This approach began in the early 20th century and culminates in most of the Bill of Rights being enforceable against state governments because they would deprive people of liberty without due process.

The Equal Protection Clause addresses whether states must treat people equally under law, not whether federal liberties restrict state action. The Supremacy Clause establishes that federal law is the supreme law of the land, but it doesn’t specify how rights get applied to the states. The Commerce Clause concerns Congress’s power to regulate interstate commerce. These clauses are not the primary means by which the Bill of Rights was made binding on the states.