Federalism: Forging a Nation
Chapter 3
Federalism: National and
State Sovereignty

The argument for federalism
 Authority
divided into two levels: national and
regional
 Protects liberty
 Moderates government power by sharing
 Strengthens the union
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Federalism: National and
State Sovereignty

The powers of the nation and states
 National:
enumerated powers
 Seventeen
powers, including measures for secure
defense and stable commerce
 Supremacy clause
 National:
implied powers
 “Necessary
and proper” / “elastic” clause: make laws in
support of enumerated powers
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Federalism: National and
State Sovereignty

The powers of the nation and states
 Tenth
Amendment established reserved powers:
powers not delegated to the national government
are reserved for the states
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4
Federalism as a Governing System:
Examples of National, State, and
Concurrent Powers
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5
Federalism in Historical Perspective

An indestructible union (1789-1865)
 The
nationalist view: McCulloch v. Maryland
(1819); clear ruling in favor of national power and
supremacy clause
 The states’-rights view: the Dred Scott decision
(1857); ruling for states rights in conflict over
legality of slavery
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6
Federalism in Historical Perspective

Dual federalism and laissez-faire capitalism
(1865-1937)
 Dual
federalism: separation of national from state
power
 The Fourteenth Amendment and state discretion
 Judicial protection of business: Supreme Court
limited national power
 National authority prevails after 1937
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Federalism in Historical Perspective

Toward national citizenship
 Equal
civil rights across all states
 Fourteenth Amendment
 Brown v. Board of Education (1954)
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Federalism Today

Interdependency and intergovernmental
relations
 Cooperative
federalism: shared policy
responsibilities
 National, state,
and local levels work together
 Joint funding, administration, and determination of
programs
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Federalism Today

Government revenues and
intergovernmental relations
 Fiscal
federalism: federal funds used for state
programs
 Categorical grants: federal funds restricted to
certain state programs
 Block grants: federal funds for state programs
addressed to a general concern
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10
Federal, State, and Local Shares of
Government Tax Revenue
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11
Federal Grants to State and Local
Governments
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12
Federalism Today

Devolution
 Shift
of power from national government to states
 Dramatically increased with Republican
Revolution of 1994
 Supreme Court has advanced devolution,
especially in latter decades of twentieth century
 Devolution movement ended with presidency of
George W. Bush: education and security policy
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The Public’s Influence: Setting the
Boundaries of Federal-State Power
Roosevelt’s “New Deal”—jobs during the
Great Depression
 Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society”—increased
social services in 1960s
 Republican Revolution—rolled back federal
authority in 1990s
 Recent public backing of huge federal stimulus
in 2009

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