US Constituion: Federalism

Question 1

Define federalism ?

Answer 1

A system of government in which bodies such as states or provinces share power with the national government

Question 2

What were also the founding fathers trying to limit ?

Answer 2

They were hoping also limit the interference of federal or central government in the affairs of the separate states

Question 3

What are reserved powers ?

Answer 3

-all powers not expressly delegated to federal government such as trade and defence are reserved to the state respectively or to the people

Question 4

Explain the constitutional ambiguity of ‘to the people’ ?

Answer 4

-if ‘the people’ means the will of voters expressed through the election of congress or the president, clearly not all residual powers necessarily lies with individual states

Question 5

At the constitutional convention which individuals wanted a stronger central government (federalist) ?

Answer 5

Benjamin Franklin and Alexander Hamilton

Question 6

Which individuals were supportive of more autonomy for individual states (anti-federalist) ?

Answer 6

Thomas Jefferson and Patrick Henry

Question 7

How was the ultimate expression of state power permanently suppressed during the Civil War 1861-65) ? (Point that weakens slavery)

Answer 7

-The civil war was fought over slavey but also involved the issues of state rights above all the ultimate power
-the north won the war and so this ultimate expression of state power was permanently suppressed

Question 8

How has the post civil war era an example of weakening federalism ?

Answer 8

-the post civil war era in south saw the emergence of legalised racial segregation
-this was viewed as permissible under the notion of state rights, it was successfully challenged and ended by the federal government in the 1950s and 1960s
-segregation has also given the notion of states rights a somewhat racist and negative connotation

Question 9

How is the 16th amendment an example of weakening federalism ?

Answer 9

-the 16th amendment 1913 allowed for national income tax, this is the only constitutional amendment to have expressly extended the power and authority of the central government

Question 10

How is the new deal and 2nd world war an example of weakening federalism ?

Answer 10

The new deal of the 1930s and 2nd world war 1940s necessarily required huge increases in the powers and influence of national government. For example during the depression, a nationwide social security programme was established. During the war industry had to be much more coordinated on a national scale

Question 11

How are the 1950s and 1960s examples of weakening federalism ?

Answer 11

-the 1950s and 1960s saw increasing measures by national government to tackle issues such as racial inequality and poverty. Not only were laws passed requiring states to end practices that prevent African American from voting but also some national healthcare scheme such as Medicare

Question 12

How is the 2000s an example of weakening federalism ?

Answer 12

-since 2000 under George W.Bush a major reform of education was undertaken on a national scale with the passing in 2002 of the No Child Left Behind Act, in addition there was a substantial expansion of Medicare to include new prescription drug benefits for seniors
-in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, the Patriot Act was passed which set up a new executive department, the department of homeland security

Question 13

Explain why under Obama there was decreasing federalism ?

Answer 13

-under Obama, government spending continued to rise with new healthcare reform including the affordable care act and several measures to help stimulate the economy following the financial crisis 0f 2007-2008 such as the American Jobs Act 2011 which provided $140 billion for repairing roads and modernising schools

Question 14

How did Trump also decreased federalism ?

Answer 14

-this trend continued under Trump, in march 2020 Trump signed the largest ever US financial stimulus package worth $2 trillion
-he had previously invoked the defence and production act 1950 which gave the president power to force private industries to create items required for national defence

Question 15

What key areas does individual state retain important roles ?

Answer 15

-the ability to legislate in a wide range of areas including local taxes and access to abortion
-the issues of death penalty is primarily state based
-the presidential elections
-states run and conduct election, deciding on weather to hold caucuses or primaries as a way of selecting party candidates

Question 16

In time of crisis such as hurricanes Katrina and sandy and the Covid’s 19 pandemic who is at the forefront ?

Answer 16

States and governors

Question 17

How do such disaster highlights the limits of state abilities to cope ?

Answer 17

They inevitably require national involvement both in the form of financial help and in the involvement of federal agencies such as the federal emergency management agency

Question 18

Name an example of this ?

Answer 18

During the covid 19 crisis there was often a sense that the US response lacked centralised coordination with president and governors often blaming each other for the shortages of vital equipment such as ventilators and personal protective equipment

Question 19

Sometime the clash between individual states and central government can be due to what ?

Answer 19

The clash between individual states and the federal government is often as much about national party politics as it is high principe of federalism’

Question 20

What did the coronavirus outbreak also revealed ?

Answer 20

-revealed the differing approaches between states to the unfolding crisis, some states were quick to lockdown such as Ohio while others including florida were much slower, some including Arkansas did not even issues a full lockdown order

Question 21

What did the coronavirus criss also lead to ?

Answer 21

-led to something of an explicit power struggle between federal and state authorities, on April 2020 when questioning about easing aspects of lockdown, Trump openly declared “when someone is president of the United States the authority is total”

Question 22

What was trump referring when he quoted “when someone is president of the United States the authority is total ?

Answer 22

He was referring directly to his ability to dictate events nationally over the heads of individual states and their governors

Question 23

What was governor Cuomo of New York response to this and what does this mean ?

Answer 23

Governor Cuomo of New York the state worst hit by the pandemic at the time replied ‘the constitution say we don’t have a king… we didn’t have a king George Washington but we did have a president George Washington
-this reflects the debate over the distribution of power in the constitution

Question 24

How does the constitution have flaws ?

Answer 24

-the constitution have real flaws such as rigidity and uneven approach to protecting rights and liberties as well as specific clauses such as requiring the electoral college, it has also been critised for enhancing the role of unelected judges who carry out the task of interpretation

Question 25

In what way is the constitution is defended from its flaws ?

Answer 25

-defenders argues that the real flaws lie in how contemporary politics is played in the USA, operating within a political culture characterised by deep polarisation and hyperpartisanship, the constitution is arguably not allowed to function effectively as opposed to being fundamentally flawed

Question 26

How is the constitution balance of small and large states support the view of the constitution being flawed ?

Answer 26

-the constitution continues to balance the interest of small and large states by equal representation in the senate but population based representation in the house. This highly reflects and respect’s the federal structure and diversity of modern America. -small states are increasingly over represented in the senate which has more by way of exclusive powers than the house, half of the senate are elected by states representing just 16% of the population.

Question 27

Show an example of this problem ?

Answer 27

-however the gap between the largest and smallest state has mushroomed since the 1780s, in 1789 the population of the largest state( the Virginia) and smallest state (then Delaware) -today the largest state, California is 68 times larger than the least populous state, Wyoming

Question 28

How does the electoral college support the view that the condition is flawed ?

Answer 28

-the electoral college has failed twice (2000 and 2016) to reflect the outcome of the popular vote, and it is a product of a bygone era before the age of mass communication and transport, when ordinary voters might not have known the candidate standing, this is no longer the cases

Question 29

How does electoral college go against the view ?

Answer 29

The electoral college ensures that smaller states are not overlooked when it comes to campaigning and importance in presidential election, this reflects the federal composition of the USA

Question 30

How does the senate checks go against that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 30

-the senate provides useful checks on presidential appointments using its advice and consent powers and can prevent unsuitable or inexperienced candidates from being appointed, for example several appointees have withdrawn when senators have raised concerns over insufficient experience or proximity to the president -these have included Supreme Court nominees Harriet Mieres in 2005 and trumps pick in 2018 of Ronny Jackson

Question 31

How does the senate support the view that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 31

-more frequently senate confirmation powers have become another location for partisan political struggles -few queried the legal expertise and experience of Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh who served as a justice on the court of appeal of district of Colombia the second most important court in the land, prior to his nomination by trump in 2018 -the controversy of his nomination and the subsequent confirmation process founded on the allegations of sexual harassment, probably owed more to his conservative judicial stance and perceived political partisanship

Question 32

How does the biennial election goes against the view that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 32

The biennial election of the entire house and a third of the senate ensure that congress is regularly held to account

Question 33

How does the biennial election support the view that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 33

However this not only means that there is a sense of constant campaigning in US politics but it also increases the chance of divided government which in turn makes gridlock more likely

Question 34

Define entrenched rights ?

Answer 34

-rights that cannot be easily removed

Question 35

How does check and balances go against that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 35

-Checks and balances remain vital, they ensure no branch can dominate the other, and in times of urgency promote collaboration and cooperation -this can be seen with the rapid passage of the patriot act soon after the 9/11 attacks and with the vast stimulus and intervention package put together during the Covid 19 crisis

Question 36

How does check and balances support that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 36

-However most of the time in an age dominated by hyper-tribal politics, there is a little true bipartisanship -check and balances often lead to politicisation, point scoring and intrigue -senate confirmation votes are often mostly decided along party lines for example the 2020 confirmation vote for Supreme Court justice Amy Coney Barrett saw her approve by 52-48 votes with just one republican and no democrats directly breaking party ranks

Question 37

How does vagueness go against that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 37

-the vagueness of the constitution terms such as ‘necessary and proper’ and ‘general welfare of the United States’ allow for flexible and evolving interpretations which ensure that the constitution stay relevant

Question 38

How does the vagueness support that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 38

-arguably to much is left in the hand of 9 unelected justices who frequently read things in different way -for example many decision on high profile matters including the legality of Obamacare or same sex marriage have been decided 5-4 on the slimmest of margines -this means interpretations can be subjective and partisan, which is hardly surprising as the justices themselves are effectively politcal appointees

Question 39

How does the president go against that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 39

-finally the constitution has managed to adapt to a world and nation where a strong executive is often vital to tackle and coordinate complex problems -a swifter response on the degree of uniformity across the nation and much greater expectation by the public in terms of social benefits and public services all require a strong presidency

Question 40

How does the presidency support that the constitution is flawed ?

Answer 40

However this just highlights how far the modern reality of the constitution has drifted from the original intentions of its framers -they envisaged a proactive congress and a largely supervisory president, particularly since 1945 the USA has ended up with pretty much the reverse, a proactive often imperial presidency and reactive congress particularly in foreign affairs