Dual Federalism Essay

Federalism as we know it was created in 1789 as a response to the failures of the Articles of Confederation and the tyranny of monarchy. The founding fathers sought to create a system that cultivated ideas with states functioning both as innovators and test subjects, yet as time has passed federalism has dramatically evolved from the dual system it once was. As 200 years have come and gone, so has government evolved and changed throughout the year; similarly, public policy has tried to keep up with the epoch. In this the viewpoint on how federalism is in fact relevant today is argued, based on economic growth and quality of life. As mentioned by Robertson federalism has evolved from its prime variation 228 years ago. At the time the United
States had recently won its independence from a monarchy, United Kingdom; as well as being exposed to the failures of a confederate form of government. As such a convention was called in Philadelphia in order to amend the articles of confederation, yet once met they concluded that to resolve the issues a new document had to be drafted from scratch; thus, the Constitution of the United States was drafted and federalism was born in the Americas. Despite the failures brought on by independent states with unlimited policy power, tyranny in the form of a unitary government, such as the monarchy was still fresh in American’s minds; hence, the new system of government devised by the framers was a compromise between federal and state rights. Federalism, despite its name, is the division of power between a central federal government and semi-independent provincial style governments. The constitution gave the central government enumerated powers. On the other hand, it gave all other powers, reserved powers, to the states and American citizens. In such system of government, the central government held the responsibility of carrying out such tasks and acting as a unitary force that strengthened the states. It is worth noting that the framers did not call the local government, provinces, but instead chose the word “state”; as defined by Merriam-Webster a state is, “politically organized body of people usually occupying a definite territory; especially one that is sovereign.” The United States of America was meant to be agents in a marketplace of ideas that promoted political innovation and diversity. As seen in the United States constitution, the system created to provide a series of checks and balances among branches of the federal government, yet equally as important, it provided a system of checks and balances between states.
Such a system allowed new policies to be executed in one state and if successful be mirrored throughout others; likewise, a bad policy would be a learning lesson to others. In the 21’st century, the system has dramatically changed as a response to social trends as well as civil rights issues. As stated by Zachary Cullen in Repurposing the Administrative State,” Dual federalism allows states, and to a lesser degree municipalities, to pursue political agendas that more closely reflect their constituents’ preferences.”, the sharing of powers allows states to cater and provide for the needs of its constituents, yet the federal government functions as both referee between states and as protector of civil rights for individual
Americans.
Aforementioned balancing of powers as well as the protection given to minorities by the federal government throughout American history demonstrates a key characteristic on the value of federalism. The United States has and continuous to serve as an example of how federalism works in unity to promote general welfare and encourage the pursuit of happiness for individuals. As seen in Race, Party, and American voting rights, “The civil rights revolution never rested on jurisprudence alone, and African Americans and other racial minorities are perhaps more central to the Democratic coalition today than they have ever been.” (Bateman), the federalist form of government provides a tool for minorities to unite and defend their rights. As seen during the civil war and the civil rights movements federalism has allowed citizens to fight back injustice and tyranny over the course of history. Whenever a local government has attempted to curfew liberty and impede the pursuit of happiness for citizens of the United States the federal government has been able to step in and protect such individuals.
On the other hand, history has favored state’s in regards to economic policy.
Compared to other economic models the United States has shown to be strongest economically when a more prevalent dual-federalism form of government was used. One of the federals governments enumerated powers has been monetary regulation. In this the United States served as an independent agent that balanced states powers with funding without being directly tied to the process and thus able to see a clearer picture. In recent years increased federal regulations as well as an increased welfare state has led to a federal government that is directly tied to the economy and thus attempts to fund itself with increased inflation and budgets. Such a system has led to a weakened economy on the global scale. Such contrast highlights how federalism can lean either way while maintaining its ideological integrity and balancing state and federal
powers.
In fact, it is this malleability and change that is mentioned by Matt Grossman and David Hopkins as seen most commonly with party politics. Federalism has pushed most American’s into a liberal civil policy mindset and a conservative economical model. This opportunity for dissent and arguments provides the ideal breeding ground for democracy in such a large nation. People are entitled to their own viewpoints and ideas are presented by individual states, yet when it comes to the common good the majority can still unite persevere. Many historians and political scientists believe federalism’s biggest failure was the civil war, yet the civil war shows how adaptable the constitution and federalist system can be to meet the demand of the public. The civil war was not a failure in public policy, but a victory, showing how some bad policies implemented by the states can have the federal government’s input. Likewise, it showed the unitary power such a system provides with indivisible states having to bend will to the rule of the majority.
It is such changes and evolution that demonstrates the power of federalism. This is democracy at its finest as majority rules while still protecting the interest of minorities. Can it be argued that both federal and state governments have made mistakes in regards to policy? Irrevocably, but at the same it can be argued that the intended purpose of federalism was to learn from those mistakes and prevent any single error being the cause of a national crisis. The current governmental organization must continue to change and the Constitution of the United States should be amended and adapted as is necessary, yet neither of this contradict with the basic ideology of federalism; moreover, it exemplifies how it was never meant to be a stagnant form of government that would last forever, instead it provided the means for an evolving government that changed in accordance to its epoch.