A Home Distillery and Prohibition

In more mundane news, there was an interesting District Court opinion out of Texas holding that the federal ban on at-home distilling is unconstitutional. The Court concluded that the ban, first enacted in 1868, exceeded Congress's power under the Commerce Clause and was not a tax. This decision could give the Supreme Court an opportunity to revisit cases like Wickard and Raich.

That said, I think that there is also a Twenty-First Amendment issue here. The Amendment implies that the states should take the lead in issue related to alcohol regulation. This was, of course, ratified well after 1868. I wonder whether Congress's powers here should be read more narrowly. Coming soon to Fifth Circuit courtroom near you.