How does the case of Angel Raich and Diane Monson demonstrate the tension in American federalism between state and federal laws?

What will be an ideal response?

Students should focus on the fact that Raich and Monson were in compliance with California state law under California’s Compassionate Use Act. They had been found to be in compliance with all state requirements and were in legal possession of plants grown on California land and consumed in the state of California. But the federal government classifies the possession and consumption of marijuana as a violation of federal law because marijuana is classified as a Class I narcotic along with LSD and heroin per the terms of the federal Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Federal DEA authorities seized the plants grown by Raich and Monson and used the commerce and supremacy clauses of the Constitution as their justification. The Supreme Court sided with federal authorities in this case, demonstrating that the federal government can use its federal supremacy in order to enforce drug laws (particularly in cohort with the commerce and elastic Clauses). While medical use of marijuana was perfectly legal under state law, it violated federal law and was therefore considered illegal by federal authorities and the Supreme Court.