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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2
Federalism: National and
State Sovereignty

The Powers of the Nation
 Enumerated
powers
powers  secure defense & stable commerce
 Supremacy clause
 17
 Implied
powers
and proper” actions  government support
 Elastic clause
 “Necessary
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3
Federalism: National and
State Sovereignty

The Powers of the States
 Oversight
of local matters: public education and
safety
 Tenth
Amendment: reserved powers
© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
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)
 The
states’-rights view: the Dred Scott Decision
(1857)
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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, 1937-
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7
Federalism in Historical Perspective

Toward national citizenship
 Equal
civil rights across all states
 Fourteenth
 Brown
Amendment
v. Board of Education (1954)
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8
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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9
Federalism Today

Government revenues and
intergovernmental relations
 Fiscal
federalism: federal funds used for state
programs
 Categorical
and block grants
 Federal
funds restricted to certain state programs
 Federal funds for state programs addressed to a general
concern
© 2009 McGraw-Hill Higher Education. All rights reserved.
10
Federalism Today

Devolution
 Shift
 The
of power from national government to states
Republican Revolution
 Devolution,
judicial style
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11
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
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