Final answer:
The Fourteenth Amendment forbids the national government from denying equal protection of the laws to any person within its jurisdiction.
Step-by-step explanation:
The amendment that forbids the national government to deny any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws is the Fourteenth Amendment. Section 1 of this amendment states, 'No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.'
This equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment is the Supreme Court's major instrument for scrutinizing state regulations and is at the heart of all civil rights.