FEDERALISM:

1. FEDERALISM: Dynamics of the System

2. SOME TRUTHS ABOUT AMERICAN FEDERALISM • American federalism is a dynamic and flexible system • Constitution’s vagueness create constraints and opportunities for politicians, citizens and interest groups to push ideas they care about • Because of this flexibility, elected and appointed officials on all levels tend to make policy decisions based on pragmatic considerations • Policy goals and politics dominate decision making

3. SOME TRUTHS ABOUT AMERICAN FEDERALISM • There is a growing belief among politicians and citizens that public problems cut across governmental boundaries • Certain forces can cause a shift in the relationship between the national and state governments

4. NATIONAL CRISES & DEMANDS • By using the elastic clause, Congress has been able to increase the scope of the national government

5. NATIONAL CRISES AND DEMANDS: GREAT DEPRESSION • New Deal programs were enacted to stimulate economic activity and help the unemployed; power shifted to the national government • States were given financial assistance, as long as they did what was required by the national government • New Deal helped to change the way Americans thought about their problems and the role of the national government in solving them (revolutionary) • Congress did not claim any new powers, it simply used its existing powers to suit the circumstances (not so revolutionary)

6. NATIONAL CRISES AND DEMANDS: SEPTEMBER 11 • President signed the Patriot Act, giving the federal government more power • Expanded investigative and surveillance powers of the Justice Department • Created the Department of Homeland Security • Established the Terrorism Information Awareness program

7. NATIONAL CRISES AND DEMANDS: VOTING RIGHTS ACT OF 1965 • States have the right to determine voting qualifications (Article 1; Section 2) • 15th Amendment provided that a person could not be denied the right to vote based on their race • States found other ways to disenfranchise African Americans • Voting Rights Act gave the federal government the power to intervene if otherwise qualified individuals were being disenfranchised because of race

8. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION • The Court settles disagreements over the powers of the national and state governments by deciding whether either’s actions are unconstitutional

9. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION: Early 19th Century • Marshall Court decisions favored the national government • McCulloch v. Maryland (1819) • National government could establish a national bank • States could not tax national institutions • Gibbons v. Ogden (1824) • Commerce was interpreted to mean virtually any form of commercial activity • Taney Court decisions favored the states • Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857) • Congress could not prohibit slavery in the territories

10. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION: New Deal • Court upheld many of FDR’s New Deal Programs • Possible reasons • FDR won reelection by a land slide; Democrats held a strong majority in Congress • Court sought to defuse FDR’s court-packing plan • Expand the size of the Court and appoint judges supportive of the New deal • Switch in time that saved nine

11. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION: The Nineties • Shift back to the states • United States v. Lopez (1995) • Court ruled that a 1990 federal law banning the possession of a gun in or near a school was unconstitutional • Congress overstepped its commerce power • Printz v. United States (1997) • Struck down background checks for gun buyers • Federal government could not require local officials to implement a regulatory policy imposed by the national government

12. JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION: Twenty-first Century • Marked by a combination of nationalist and states’ rights decisions • Bush v. Gore (2000) • Overturned the Florida Supreme Court’s decision to recount ballots • Atkins v. Virginia (2002) • Court overturned Virginia’s decision to execute a mentally disabled man

13. THE RISE OF THE STATES • Robert Allen: [states are] the tawdriest, most incompetent, most stultifying unit in the nation’s political structure • Terry Sanford: [states are] ineffective, indecisive and inattentive organizations that have lost their relevance in an increasingly complicated nation and world

14. THE RISE OF THE STATES IN A FEDERAL SYSTEM • Governors and legislators employ more experienced staff • Legislatures now meet more days in the year • Elected officials receive higher salaries • Appeal of higher salaries has encouraged more qualified people to seek public office • Increasing ability of states to raise revenue allows them greater leverage when designing policy • Unelected officials who administer programs (i.e. transportation and social services) are better educated

15. THE RISE OF THE STATES IN A FEDERAL SYSTEM • National government recognizes there are certain domestic initiatives that are better administered on the state level • DEVOLUTION – giving power back to the states • Elementary and Secondary Education Act (1965) • States would be responsible for administering a bulk of the provisions in federal law • Allowed states to improve their capabilities to improve their capabilities to make and administer educational policy

16. FINAL THOUGHTS ON THE DYNAMICS OF FEDERALISM • As people have more access points to influence government, state policymakers struggle to set priorities and please their constituents