American Government and Politics Today

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American Government and Politics Today

• Chapter 3
• Federalism

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A Unitary System

• The central government has power over
  sub-national governments (counties, provinces,
  etc.) and can overrule lower decisions
• Local governments typically have only powers
  granted to them by the central government, rather
  than any reserved powers
• A key role of the central government is that of
  provider of funds

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A Confederal System

• Power is retained by local or regional
  governments
• The national government has only the powers
  expressly delegated to it and can handle only the
  matters its member states set out for it to
  handle
• Example the European Union

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A Federal System

• Divides power between the national and
  lower-level governments
• Each level of government has distinct powers that
  the other levels cannot override
• Examples Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany,
  India, Mexico, and the United States

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Why Federalism?

• Combines strong states with a central government
  strong enough to maintain order
• Accommodates the large geographical size of the
  country
• Allows state governments to train national
  politicians and test new ideas
• Allows for many political subcultures

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Why Not Federalism?

• May let state interests block national plans
• May perpetuate inequalities across states
• May fuel overactive
  federal expansion

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The Flow of Power in Three Systems of Government
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Powers of the National Government

• Enumerated powers those specifically given to
  the national government in the Constitution
• The Necessary and Proper Clause (elastic clause)
  allows the national government to exercise
  implied powers in making decisions that fall
  outside the expressed powers
• Inherent powers those derived from the fact
  that the U.S. is a sovereign nation and can act
  as such

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Powers of State Governments

• Based on the Tenth Amendment, all powers not
  delegated to the national government nor denied
  to states are given to the states or the people
• Police power a states protection of welfare,
  safety, health, and even morals of its citizens
• The Tenth Amendment has been interpreted
  differently throughout history at times federal
  powers have expanded, and at other times states
  rights have grown stronger

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Concurrent and Prohibited Powers

• Concurrent powers those, like the power to tax,
  held by both national and state governments
• They are mostly implied rather than enumerated
• A states ability to exercise them is generally
  limited to that states geographic area
• Prohibited powers those denied to the national
  government, the states, or both
• Examples national government cannot tax exports,
  state governments are prohibited from coining
  money

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Supremacy Clause

• Article VI of the Constitution mandates that
  actions by the national government are supreme
• Any conflict between a legitimate action of the
  national government and a state will be resolved
  in favor of the national government

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Vertical Checks and Balances

• Federalism can be seen as an additional way to
  prevent government from growing too strong
• Just as the legislative, executive, and judicial
  branches of the national government check each
  other, national- and state-level governments can
  balance each other

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Interstate Relations

• Article IV of the Constitution attempts to
  resolve potential problems between states by
  requiring states to
• give full faith and credit to actions of other
  states
• extend to other states citizens the privileges
  and immunities of its own citizens
• extradite fugitives when requested to do so
• Interstate compacts are allowed, but
  Congressional consent may be required if the
  compact increases the relative power of the
  involved states

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Defining Constitutional PowersThe Early Years

• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) affirmed that the
  power of Congress is not strictly limited to its
  expressed powers Chief Justice Marshall held
  that Congress has implied powers to carry out the
  expressed powers
• Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) set the precedent for
  the national government exclusively to regulate a
  wide range of economic activities under the
  commerce clause

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States Rights and the Civil War

• The Jacksonian Era featured a shift back to
  states rights
• To undertake the Civil War, the federal
  government levied an income tax and hired
  thousands, ironically growing despite the Souths
  protests of its size and scope
• The Civil War amendments
• Represented a serious enhancement of national
  power
• Abolished slavery
• Defined who was an American citizen
• Attempted to provide rights to the freed slaves

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Dual Federalism

• Emphasized the division of state and national
  spheres of power into entirely separate
  jurisdictions
• Represented a revival of states rights
• Was part of the Supreme Courts attempt to regain
  its influence after the Civil War

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The New Deal and Cooperative Federalism

• Dual federalism (Hoover) vs. New Deal legislation
  (Roosevelt)
• Cooperative federalism emphasized an expanded
  role for the national government and cooperation
  between it and the states
• Picket-fence federalism in the 1960s and 1970s

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The New Deal and Cooperative Federalism
(continued)

• Roosevelts programs typically were funded by the
  federal government but administered by state and
  local governments
• This created a cooperative framework for
  federalist relations

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Implementing Cooperative Federalism

• Categorical grants
• Formula and program grants
• What strings are attached to
  these federal grants?
• Block grants
• Federal mandates

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Central Government Spending
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The Politics of Federalism

• States rights have been associated with
  conservatism, and national authority has been
  associated with liberalism - why?
• States tend to favor the status quo
• Accomplishments of
  national authority
• Civil rights and the
  war on poverty

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Federalism Becomes a Republican Issue

• The New Federalism
• Beginning with President Nixon, this devolution
  was championed by the Republican Party
• It represented a new use of the term federalism
• However, liberals also have reasons to support
  states rights at times, such as in gay rights
  issues

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Federalism and the Supreme Court Today

• Reigning in the commerce power
• State sovereignty and the Eleventh Amendment
• Tenth Amendment issues
• Other federalism cases

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Questions for Critical Thinking

• Name some examples in which the supremacy
  doctrine has a practical effect.
• Discuss the importance of the case of Gibbons v.
  Ogden (and the cases that were based on its
  principles).
• What are some obstacles to devolution? Are there
  any disadvantages to the New Federalism?