POLS 206 1st Edition Lecture 5 Outline of Last Lecture I Figuring out the set up of the new government a Articles of Confederation did not work Shay s Rebellion was one result b Making the Constitution North vs South Federalists vs Anti federalists c The Constitution s principles and Rules for Amending Ratifying Outline of Current Lecture II Federalism a Definition origin and other power systems b Advantages vs Disadvantages lll Advantages vs Disadvantages lV Power Division a Powers Federalism has does not have and implied powers b McCulloch vs Maryland Supreme Court Case V Division between State and Federal Power a State Power what it can and can not do b Comparing State and Federal Power c Clauses Current Lecture l Federalism a Definition essentially Federalism is the central and regional governments sharing powers b Origin Federalism really started from the Articles of Confederation what we learned from the mistakes that came out of it The founders then came to realize we really need a strong central power but people also need to govern themselves a complicated compromise that means we need a representative government c Other types of powers in the United States Unitary strong central government with all power such as College Station gets it s power only from the state government Confederal each state has equal say such as the United Nations all have equal power say ll Advantages vs Disadvantages a Advantages Local decisions can have an effect on governmental decisions you can change laws in your community decrease the fighting between government and citizens can have policy experimentation such as No Child Left Behind was only tested in Texas before tried at a national level makes national policy goals b Disadvantages causes complexity if you pay taxes in one state and move to another where there s no taxes you still have to pay little taxes to the other state confusion a lot of different laws in different states and duplication there are laws that are in every state such as no murdering people can increase conflict between state and federal governments there is inequalities between policy and service certain states can not afford certain policies reduces accountability who is the responsible party after a natural disaster state city or Federal government causes coordination to be difficult tough to know who is in charge of what lll Power Division a There are several powers Federalism has such as economic control make taxes pay US debts borrow money coin money regulate commerce and make weights and measures to keep from inflation make a Federal Court system and protect the country yield a defense declare war and keep the Maritime and International Law b There are many powers Federalism does not have such as supervise slavery before 1808 suspend people of writ of habeas corpus holding accused people of a crime controlling Bills of Attainder establishing nobility titles taking money out of the treasury without certain bills as well as keeping ex post facto laws c There are also implied powers Federalism has The idea that when the founders were writing the Constitution they did not know all of the responsibilities the federal government would have so this allows the government to make laws the government has to do The necessary and proper clause has let the federal government to have more power The elastic clause gives the government ability to change when need be d McCulloch vs Maryland 1819 The first Supreme Court case to challenge or interpret just what the necessary and proper clause is The result of the case was that Congress had authority as long as it s acts were consistent with the spirit and within the scope of the Constitution as well as legitimately made to use the enumerated powers properly lv Division between State and Federal Power a State Power essentially any powers not specifically granted to the federal government 10th Amendment So the State government can regulate intrastate commerce make taxes within the state keep a state militia later became federal government s job with the National Guard and make any laws necessary to protect the health welfare and safety of the people b The State Government cannot do anything specifically the federal government is in charge of doing such as make treaties or alliances tax imports or exports or engage in wars c When comparing State and Federal governments there really is not much of a difference in their responsibilities The major distinction is the State is in charge of that specific state and the local population The Federal government is in charge of running the states combined as a nation Both have responsibilities such as impose taxes borrow money establish courts and provide for the general population but the State s power is just on a smaller more local scale d There are several clauses that specify the rules i Supremacy Clause Article lV Clause 2 States cannot counter national power So when state and federal laws disagree federal laws pretty much always wins The government needed to make sure the Constitution was the highest law of the land The McCulloch vs Maryland was the first case to consider this clause ii The Commerce Clause Article l Section 8 Clause 3 Congress has the power to regulate commerce internationally and between several states Gibbons vs Ogden proved this clause The limitations of the Federal government in this area is explicitly shown in the Constitution iii The Full Faith and Credit Clause Article 4 Section l Each state must follow the public acts records and judicial proceedings of other states So essentially this was a way to make sure when one state recognizes something others will too such as a marriage this way you do not have to get married in all 50 states iv The Privileges and Immunities Clause Citizens from each state are entitled to certain immunities and privileges other states do not have States cannot discriminate against citizens of other states or give special privileges to their own people
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