Federalism
• Divides the power of government within
the levels of government (sep of powers)
but also across governments (between
state and national governments)
• Federalist 51: federalism = “double
security against majority tyranny”
Other Forms of Government
• Unitary Government
– Most nations have unitary governments
• Hierarchical power structure
• Authority lies with national government
– Example: Britain
• Confederation
– Members join together to achieve common goal
• Only has power lent to it by members
• Members can withdraw support at any time
– Example: NATO, Confederate States of America
Federalism
• One national government, 50 state
governments
• Result: Shared power between the federal
government and the states.
• Examples: (Table 3.1)
– Dual sovereignty
Validity of Federalism
• Basic Tradeoff between Unitary
Government and Federalism
– A more centralized system is likely to be
more uniform, equitable, and accountable
decentralized system is likely to be more
democratic and flexible
Types of Federalism
• Dual Federalism (United States)
– Layer cake federalism
– Each level is independent and separate from
the other
• Cooperative Federalism
– Marble-cake Federalism
– Interaction between various levels of
government
Ways Federal Power Has Been
Expanded
– Supremacy Clause: national laws superior to
state laws
• McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)
– Commerce Clause: interstate commerce
– Spending Clause: power of the purse
– Necessary and Proper Clause (“Elastic
Clause”)
Examples:
• South Dakota v. Dole (1987)
– Drinking age
• U.S. v. Lopez (1995)
– 1990 Gun-Free School Zone Act
• Katzenbach v. McClung (1964)
– Civil Rights Act of 1964
New Federalism
• Nixon: New Federalism
– Underlined notion that states were being returned
authority over their own funds, not granted license to
spend federal money
– Decentralization of power
• Reagan: New Federalism II
– Control over federal programs would be shifted more
to the states
• George W. Bush:
– More state level control over policies (example: No
Child Left Behind  More state level involvement and
accountability)
Strength of Federalism
• Local control
– Citizens place more trust in local government
• Proximity to Citizens
– Some argue that local gov’t knows needs of
people better than federal government
• Innovation and Experimental Lab
– States are “laboratories of democracy”
Weaknesses of Federalism
• Allows local minorities to block the will
of national majorities (civil rights)
• Justice varies from state to state (policies)
Effects of Federalism:
Policy Decisions
• What level of government should make
decisions about public policy issues?
– Death Penalty
– Gun Control Laws
– Welfare
– Education
– Voting laws
– Marriage
– Alcohol/Tobacco/Drugs