Magleby & Light
Government by the People
Chapter 3
American Federalism
Federalism
Federalism offers an approach that
unifies diverse people into nations, but
also retains the elements that can lead
to disunity. It distributes powers
between the central and smaller
regional governments (states), with the
greatest power being in the hands of
the central government.
2 differing interpretations of the
Constitution concerning federalism:
1. The 10th Amendment-“powers not
delegated to the United States by the
Constitution, nor prohibited by it to
the States, are reserved to the States
respectively or to the people”. This is
the argument used for dual federalism
where a limited list of powers is given
to the national government and the
states retain the rest.
2. The elastic clause (Article 1, Section 8,
Clause 18)-from which “implied”
powers are derived-Congress may
“make all laws necessary and
proper” to run the governmentwhich is the basis for all implied
powers of the national government.
*The relationship between national and
state governments has shifted over time
due to historical circumstances and
specific Constitutional changes!
The national government has expanded
its powers by:
1. Legislation
2. Judicial interpretation
3. Incentives and sanctions
Examples of the above:
1. Voting Rights Act of 1965
*The Voting Rights Act of 1965:
A.If less than ½ of the population was
registered to vote, the federal
government would send in
REGISTRARS;
B.If there was a complaint of voter
discrimination, the federal
government would send in
EXAMINERS.
C.Literacy tests cannot be used for 5
years.
2. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), Dred
Scott decision (1857), cases
concerning New Deal legislation
(1936 & 1937), Brown v. the Board
of Education of Topeka, Kansas
(1954)
3. Grants-in-aid, Categorical grants,
Formula grants, Project grants,
Block grants
*Through these examples, the national
government is increasingly predominant!
New Age Federalism began:
1. With a New Federalism between 1969
and 1974 imposed by President
Nixon
2. And from 1977 to 1981, President
Carter continued the trend of cutting
national aid to the states
3. Between 1981 and 1989, President
Reagan continued to reduce federal
contributions to states
4. President Bush, Sr. reaffirmed
Reagan’s New Federalism and from
1989 to 1993 maximum discretion
was given to the state and local
governments for policy innovation
5. President Clinton’s policies seemed to
be a continuation of the same goals
of asking states to be creative, yet
cutting federal funds to support their
programs
Preemption - The power of Congress to
enact laws that assume total or partial
responsibility for a state government
function precluding enforcement of a
local law.
In 2007 states were given the
responsibility for acting as the 1st
responders to national emergencies,
such as Hurricane Katrina, but only
received a small fraction of the needed
funds – this is a partial preemption.
Delegated Powers – powers given to the
Federal Government -they include:
“Expressed” powers – powers that are
written down;
“Implied” powers – powers that are
understood (inferred – not written down);
“Inherent” powers – powers of the federal
government, simply because it is the
federal government. An example would be
the right of the federal government to deal
with other nations.
Powers granted to the Federal
government (only):
1. CONGRESS can declare war;
2. Coin/print money;
3. Grant copyrights and patents;
4. Create post offices;
5. Maintain the military.
Powers granted to the State government Reserved Powers:
1. Establish police;
2. Oversee primary/secondary education
3. Take land for public use;
4. Charter local governments;
5. Borrow money;
6. Conduct elections.
Powers denied to the Federal government:
1. No export taxes;
2. No titles of nobility.
Powers denied to the State government:
1. Cannot tax the federal government;
2. Cannot declare war;
3. Cannot make treaties with a foreign
government.
Concurrent Powers – powers
shared by the State and Federal
governments – they include:
1. Power to make laws;
2. Establish courts;
3. Borrow and spend money;
4. Impose and collect taxes and
fees.
The National government’s responsibilities
to the States:
1. Guarantee a republican form of
government;
2. Provide protection against domestic
violence and foreign invasion;
3. Respect each state’s territorial integrity.
Grants-in-Aid – money from the federal
government to the states on a 50/50 basis
– first used during the Administration of
L.B.J.
Pro - States only have to spend ½ a much;
Con – The federal government can no
longer afford to fund the entire
program.
Revenue Sharing – the Federal government
“shares” its tax revenue with each state –
used during the Administration of Nixon
3 reasons for using revenue sharing:
1. It solves many state money problems;
2. States can decide how to use the money;
3. States no longer have to tax the very
poor.
Dual federalism is the practice of
allowing the states and the federal
government to exercise power
separately in areas of legitimate concern
to them
Someone who believes that the elastic
clause of the Constitution should be
narrowly interpreted is most likely to
endorse the concept dual federalism
Cooperative federalism – “marble cake”
An overlap in the responsibilities of the
various levels of government is likely
in our form of federalism
Unfunded mandates:
1) force the states to pay for policies they
may not want or have not chosen;
2) are strongly criticized by state and
local officials;
3) are requirements that the national
government places on the states
without granting the states the funds
to carry out the requirement.
When our country had its first
constitution, we were a confederation
– limiting the power of the central
government we created so it could not
control the states or individuals
directly.
Block grants are for very general
purposes
Special districts are created between
jurisdictions (within a state) for the
purpose of “solving” a problem (taxes,
school districts, pollution, etc.)
Under Reagan's "New Federalism,"
federal grants as a percentage of state
and local expenditures decreased
substantially as the states took on more
duties (expanding dual federalism)
The Supreme Court at first treated the
Great Depression as an accumulation of
local problems, and not something that
demanded national action. Later,
however, the U.S. Supreme Court
decided the Tenth Amendment was not a
severe restriction on the power of the
national government and from the late
1930’s, the Court generally upheld
Congress’ expansion of national power
and authority.
If a person favors states’ rights, they
tend to favor a narrow view of the
Constitution and a limitation on the
powers of the federal government, and
favor the view of dual federalism.
The national government has used the
commerce clause to expand its powers
and in the area of voting has used the
15th Amendment as a “legal” basis for
regulation of elections.
The complexity of the American federal
system leads to the use of pluralism, in
many cases
Some make the criticism that there is
actually very little legislative power at
the very local level in our federal system
Federalism is able to unify diverse
groups of people because it does not
require citizens to be ruled by
majorities from different regions
The theory of nullification is the idea that
a state could declare an act of the federal
government null and void – this would be
a states’ right theory and goes against the
federalist structure of our government
The power to “lay and collect taxes” has
been used to establish many offices, not
mentioned in the Constitution, such as the
Internal Revenue Service, by implied
powers
The Framers of the Constitution avoided
making a list of all powers and their
limitations because they felt they would be
unable to specify every power that might
be necessary to operate the government
If you favor states’ rights, you would
interpret the Constitution “narrowly” –
favoring “dual federalism”
If you favor a strong central government,
you would favor a more loose
interpretation of the Constitution
Powers tend to shift back and forth
between the states and the federal
government because of our system being
able to adapt to historical changes
The 10th Amendment is often viewed as
the part of the Constitution that limits the
power of the government by stating that
if a power is not delegated to the federal
government or prohibited to the states,
then those powers belong to the states and
the people
An example of a direct order in federal
regulations is the Equal Opportunity
Act of 1972, barring job discrimination
by state and local governments on the
basis of race, religion, color, sex and
national origin.
An example of a cross-cutting
regulation would be Title VI of the 1964
Civil Rights Act which holds that in the
use of federal funds, no person may be
discriminated against on the basis of
race, color, or national origin.
Federalism is seen as checking the growth of
tyranny because when one party loses
control of the national government, it is still
likely to hold offices at the state level and be
able to challenge the ruling party in the next
election.
Federalism also encourages experimentation
because if a program is used at the state
level the negative effects are limited, but if it
succeeds it can be adopted by other states
and the national government.
The National Supremacy Clause means that
states cannot override national policies.
The belief that the ultimate power in the
government resides with the people is called
popular sovereignty.
Our political culture, our widely shared
beliefs about citizenship and government does
not include a deference to the aristocracy.
Natural rights include the idea of the
fundamental worth and dignity of each
individual in society.
When our nation shares attitudes about
government, institutions, and procedures is is
called the democratic concensus.
In the U.S. a fundamental belief is the rule of
law, where in theory, laws are applied equally
and by just procedures.
A belief that laws apply to the present or the
future and should not punish an earlier action
before it violated the law is the idea of
prospectivity.
Force should, in theory, not be necessary for a
government to get its people to adhere to the
rule of law.
Defining Federalism
Federalism
Constitutional arrangement whereby power is
distributed between a central government and smaller,
regional governments (eg., states).
Versions of Federalism
Dual Federalism
Cooperative Federalism
Views the constitution as giving a
limited list of powers to the
national government, leaving the
rest to sovereign states
Federalism as a cooperative system of
intergovernmental relations in
delivering goods and services to the
people
Marble Cake Federalism
Competitive Federalism
“As the colors are mixed in a
marble cake, so functions are
mixed in the American federal
system”
Views the levels of government as
being in competition with each
other – national, the 50 states
and the thousands of local
governments – to provide
packages of services and taxes
Versions of Federalism
Permissive Federalism
Powers are shared, but state
power rests upon the permission
and permissiveness of the
national government
“New Federalism”
Presumes that the power of the
federal government is limited in favor
of the broad powers reserved to the
states
Why Federalism?

Limit tyranny


Unity without
uniformity

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Encourage policy
experimentation
Training for national
officials
More arenas for public
participation
Interstate Relations

Full faith and credit clause – courts must enforce
civil judgments and public records of other states


Interstate privileges and immunities
Extradition – deliver a wanted person to the state
where they may have fled

Interstate compacts
The Great Debate:
Centralists versus Decentralists
Centralism
Supporters: Chief Justice John
Marshall, Presidents Abraham Lincoln,
Theodore Roosevelt, and Franklin
Roosevelt, and the Supreme Court for
most of its history
Position: The central government
should be denied authority only when
the Constitution clearly prohibits it
from acting
Decentralism
Supporters: Anti-Federalists,
Thomas Jefferson, Supreme
Court from 1920s to 1937, and
Presidents Ronald Reagan and
George W. Bush
Position: Views the Constitution
as a compact among states that
gives the central government
very little authority
The Supreme Court and the Role of
Congress
Beginning in 1995, justices interested in granting
more deference to state authority gained a slim
five-to-four majority in the Supreme Court
The Constitutional
Counterrevolution
A return to an older version of federalism not
embraced since the constitutional crisis over
the New Deal in the 1930s
Regulatory Federalism
FEDERAL GRANTS:
Supply
Establish
state and local governments with revenue
minimum national standards (eg., highways, clean
air)
Equalize
Attack
resources among the states
national problems, yet minimize the growth of federal
agencies
Types of Federal Grants

In 1996 there was a shift from
categorical grants to block grants

Categorical-formula:
•
•
•

Block grants




Specific projects
Allocated by formula
Subject to detailed conditions
Far more flexible
Used for welfare, child care,
education, and social services
Few strings attached
Revenue Sharing – revenue to be
shared and then used at the
discretion of the local areas
Purposes of Federal Grants to State
and Local Governments
The Politics of Federal Grants
The Republican
“Contract with
America” called for
devolution— the
transfer of political
and economic power
to the states
For example: Welfare
New Techniques of Federal Control
Total and Partial
Preemption
Crossover Sanctions
Cross-Cutting Requirements
Direct Orders
The Growth of National Government
Why has the power of the national
government grown over the last two
centuries?
Industrialization
Great Depression
WWII
Political leaders’ promotion of federal
initiatives
The Future of Federalism
During recent decades,
state governments have
become stronger than
ever.
-Increasingly
aggressive on
economic and
environmental matters
-Questionable effect on
minority rights
Even so, the persistence of
international terrorism, the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq, and rising
deficits all ensure a substantial role
for the national government in the
years to come.
*When individuals charged with a crime are returned
to that area (state) for trial, it is called extradition
Controversy Over the Creation of
Martin Luther King Jr. Day



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Introduced in Congress just
days after King’s assassination
in 1968, but not passed until
1983
Support was strong among
groups such as labor unions
and the National Football
league
Yet states such as AZ, VA, and
SC were opposed to the idea
In 2008, though racial tensions
were never far from the
headlines, candidates from
both parties celebrated King’s
accomplishments
These changing attitudes
toward King exemplify a shift
in political culture in the U.S.
Defining the U.S. Political Culture

Widely shared
beliefs, values, and
norms about how
citizens relate to
government and to
one another

Suffrage

Social capital
Shared Values
Equality
Liberty
Individualism
Respect for the Common Person
Democratic Consensus
Justice and the Rule of Law
Patriotism
Optimism and Idealism
Where We Learn the American Political
Culture
Family
Schools
Number of times a week
American families say that
they eat together
Schools teach an idealized
view of the nation’s
slogans and symbols
Where We Learn the American Political
Culture
Peers and Community
Religion
Research shows that in
heterogeneous communities, political
participation tends to be higher, with
more contested and competitive
elections, and with more political
debate than in homogeneous
communities
Those raised in religious
households tend to be
socialized to contribute to
society and to get involved in
their communities
Where We Learn the American Political
Culture
Media
More than two-thirds of Americans
report that they receive “all or most”
of their news from television
The American Dream
Coming from humble
beginnings, Oprah
Winfrey—television host,
movie actress, and one of
the highest-paid people in
the country—epitomizes the
American Dream
Political and Economic Change
The Industrial
Transformation
The Great Depression
and the New Deal
Political Ideology:
A Consistent Pattern of Beliefs About
Political Values and the Role of Government
Liberalism
A belief that
government can
and should achieve
justice and
equality of
opportunity
Political Ideology:
A Consistent Pattern of Beliefs About
Political Values and the Role of Government
Conservatism
A belief that
limited government
ensures order,
competitive markets,
and personal
opportunity
Liberalism and Conservatism
Socialism
An economic and
governmental
system based on
public ownership of
the means of
production and
exchange
Bernard Sanders, a self-described
socialist, is a Congressman from Vermont
Libertarianism
An ideology that
cherishes individual
liberty and insists on
a minimal
government,
promoting a freemarket economy, a
noninterventionist
foreign policy, and an
absence of regulation
in moral, economic,
and social life
Bob Barr (center), Libertarian
candidate for president in 2008
People in Politics: Rachel Carson
A leading scientist in the 1950s and 1960s and
author of Silent Spring
Nationalism is an enduring sense of group
identity or consciousness that comes from
cultural, historic, or political forces.
In America, citizens often learn about their
political culture from schools, family,
churches, mass media, etc.
In this country we often feel laws cannot be
kept secret by the government so we demand
a form of publicity before they can executed.
The idea that all laws should be enforced
impartially and with a fair procedure is
called due process.
The American Dream seems to remain
unfulfilled for many as it is the belief that the
U.S. is the land of opportunity and that all can
succeed through hard work.
In the economic system of capitalism:
People sell for a profit;
There are competitive markets;
There is usually limited government
involvement – laissez faire.
China, is rated highest by their people in
confidence in their government.
The idea that laws should not single out any
group or individual is the idea of generality.
According to political scientist, Robert Dahl,
the “robber barrons” helped bring about a
high degree of inequality in the distribution of
wealth and a new economic order that
replaced our agrarian society – by 1900.
Your consistent pattern of beliefs about
political values and the role of government is
called your political ideology.
An ideology that stresses the importance of
individual freedom is classical liberalism.
Democrats are often considered liberal in
ideology and republicans – conservative.
Younger citizens tend to be more liberal and
older citizens tend to be more conservative.
More men, at this time, describe themselves as
conservatives.
A person who feels the government should step
in and correct the defects of our economic
system is more likely to be liberal.
In its current usage, liberalism refers to the
positive uses of government to bring about
justice and equality of opportunity.
Before the New Deal era of F.D.R. there was:
No Social Security;
No unemployment compensation;
No F.D.I.C.;
No regulation of the stock market.
Some of the causes of the Great Depression were:
Unregulated markets (no regulation of stocks);
Unrestrained capitalism (not anti-trust laws);
A series of failures by the nation’s banks.
The 3 types of federal grants presently
being administered are:
1) Block;
2) Revenue – Sharing; and
3) Categorical-formula grants (which are
for specific purposes or allocated by
formula).
Dealignment – movement among voters
toward nonpartisanship resulting in a
weakening of the party structure
*States can only be admitted by CONGRESS
if:
1. The area petitions Congress;
2. Congress passes an “enabling act”;
3. This act enables the writing a constitution;
4. The people vote in favor of the
constitution;
5. Congress reviews the constitution and
admits – called an “act of admission”