The Court learned this lesson, involving the economic interrelationships of the states, very well. Between 1937 and 1995, it never struck down legislative action under the Commerce Clause. The Court allowed Congress to prevent racial discrimination at small restaurants, to apply heat quotas to a local dairy farm in Ohio, to ban loan-sharking enforced by threats of violence, and to apply maximum hour and minimum wage laws throughout the nation. In the midst of the Depression, the nation required concerted federal action, and the Court could not long stand in the way. But there are two still more important and enduring points, involving economic interdependence and the nature of the Constitution itself.
Economic interdependence is inevitable in modern societies.
If a strike occurs at a plant in Ohio, it is likely that sooner or later, people outside Ohio will be affected. If there is racial discrimination at hotels in Georgia, it is inevitable that some people will be less likely to travel and do business in Georgia. The level of wages for low-income workers in New York will matter to states other than New York. Seemingly local acts often have national repercussions. In any case, there is little need for an aggressive role by the Supreme Court in protecting states against national incursions.