14 Sep 2022

64

Federalism in Theory and Practice in the United States of America

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For an extended period, the United States of America has been striving to develop through various mechanisms. One of such strategies is the drafting of laws that help govern the country within the realms of social, economic, and political frameworks. It in that light, the Founding Fathers of the US, adopted various theories about the governance of the nation through the Constitution. While there are several aspects of the Constitution that these pioneering individuals drafted, some of their works remain outstanding because of their far-reaching effects. Among theme is the concept of Federalism that takes different formats. Essentially, Federalism means an idea that examines some processes that lead to the federation integration of regions (Ryan, 2009). In the case of the US, the hypothesis involves the provisions of the Constitution that created and maintains different levels of governance in the federal state of America (Ryan, 2009). Therefore, federalism theory that the Founding Fathers incorporated in the American Constitution is explainable in different related ideas due to its connection to various aspects of the leadership in the United States of America.

The first contour is that of separation of powers and how each branch of government has specific roles in the United States of America that can be used to reflect the idea of Federalism. In essence, the separation of powers means giving each branch of government, executive, legislative, and judicial, some specific powers that provide them with autonomy within the provisions of the US constitution (Leib & Brudney, 2017). In other words, the concept entails the existence of systems of checks and balances because each branch has certain powers that help them to check and balance the other two branches (Kasper, 2017). The Founders of the Nation specified the responsibilities of each department. Generally, they include the legislative branch exercising the congressional power, the executive branch using the executive power, and the Judiciary branch the power to review constitutional matters (Kasper, 2017). The separated authorities and the essential roles of each segment relate to Federalism. For instance, in Federalism, and the separation of power are representations of Founder's effort at dividing the administrative power (Coan & Bullard, 2015). The desire revolved around the need to ensure that those in power within the federal and state levels do not abuse their power through the creation of limits that both the separation of powers and federalism support. In sum, the examination separation of powers and the integral roles of branches governments in the US play some particular roles help in the appreciation of the idea of separation of powers within the spectrum of the Federalism theory.

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The description of how powers are shared between the states' and federal governments as stipulated in the 'supremacy clause' and the 10th Amendment also helps in the explanation of the federalism theory. Inherently, the sharing of powers that the Federalism endorses and the inherent limitation of influence of governments relate to the aspect of sharing of powers within states as well as the 10th Amendment in the United States of America. On one part, the US constitution has some specific roles that the state governments play to help in the administration of the country (Ryan, 2009). As such, the federal government is not mandated to take up those roles and may only play supportive roles. Nonetheless, the national and state administration can share power by each supportive playing roles in such cases within the spirit of Federalism.

Additionally, in cases of conflicting legal provisions, the separation of power becomes imminent in the federal power getting preference as stipulated in the 'Supremacy Clause.' Illustratively, the Supremacy Clause asserts that America's Constitution, federal decrees made pursuant to it as well as any treaties made under its power, create the "supreme Law of the Land"; hence, it has preference over any conflicting laws within the state (Voigt, 2014). Thus, the clause and the sharing of power's concept relate to Federalism.

Within the same perspective, the 10th Amendment helps to affirm the Federalism in the management of the state and federal governments. Fundamentally, the 10th Amendment is an essential facet in the division of power that the federalism advocates. Principally, this is because it defines the concept of Federalism within the context of the association between the federal and state administration (Ryan, 2009). Correspondingly, the bill of rights that are inherent in the Amendment is also crucial in apportioning power to the citizens of the United States of America. The supposition relates to the fact the 10th Amendment provides human rights' bill that gives people absolute inalienable freedom as the citizens of the United States of America. Intrinsically, the provision helps in preventing the arms of governments from interfering with the constitutional provision in the spirit of Federalism. Therefore, the affirmations in the 'supremacy clause' and the 10th Amendment helps in the elucidation of the concept of Federalism about the sharing of powers.

The last context is that the unique general impact that the Separation of Powers, as well as Federalism, have had on the democracy of the United States of America helps to further the argument on the hypothesis. For example, the existence of independence within the three arms of the US government has helped in the democratization through the limitations of possible interference from other branches (Coan & Bullard, 2015). Indeed, this is true in regards to the already stated fact of government first area is the limitation of the power of each branch, as stated in the federalism premise. Therefore, each segment has the freedom to excise its constitutional duties without any fear of retribution from other arms. At the same time, the 10th Amendment of the American Constitution that forms part of the concept of the Separation of Powers also helps in enforcing democratic tendencies in the United States. For instance, the restraining of the powers of the state and national governments, as implied in the Bill of Rights, gives some forms of freedom to the citizens (The Harvard Law Review Association, 1976). Hence, the effect of the Separation of Powers and Federalism on the democratization of the US helps in the contextualization of the federalism hypothesis.

To conclude, the contextualization of the federalism theory can take different perspectives based on some ideas related to the governance of the United States of America. Innately, these areas include separation of powers and how each branch of authority has specific roles in the US. Additionally, the explanation of how powers are shared between the governments at the federal and state levels also help in defining the theory. Lastly, some specific effects that the Separation of Powers and Federalism have had on American democracy are essential in contextualizing the federalism theory. In summary, the study of the description of the theory of Federalism within the realm of the American Constitution incorporates different ideas for enhanced comprehension.

References

Coan, A., & Bullard, N. (2015). Judicial capacity and executive power. SSRN Electronic Journal , 102 (3), 765-831. https://web-b-ebscohost-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?vid=10&sid=f4d58aee-5db1-46c5-9be7-9e4685cf9de1%40pdc-v-sessmgr02&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=115168593&db=ofs

The Harvard Law Review Association. (1976). Municipal bankruptcy, the tenth Amendment, and the new Federalism. Harvard Law Review , 89 (8), 1871. https://doi.org/10.2307/1340108

Kasper, E. T. (2017). The Possibility of Rejection: The Framers' Constitutional Design for Supreme Court Appointments. Creighton Law Review , 51 (3), 539-576. https://web-b-ebscohost-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?vid=3&sid=f4d58aee-5db1-46c5-9be7-9e4685cf9de1%40pdc-v-sessmgr02&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=130260172&db=ofs

Leib, E. J., & Brudney, J. J. (2017). Legislative Underwrites. Virginia Law Review , 103 (7), 1487-1562. https://web-b-ebscohost-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=2&sid=f4d58aee-5db1-46c5-9be7-9e4685cf9de1%40pdc-v-sessmgr02

Ryan, E. (2009). Federalism at the 'Cathedral': Property rules, liability rules, and inalienability rules in tenth Amendment infrastructure. University of Colorado Law Review; 81 (1), 1-95. https://web-b-ebscohost-com.lopes.idm.oclc.org/ehost/detail/detail?vid=12&sid=f4d58aee-5db1-46c5-9be7-9e4685cf9de1%40pdc-v-sessmgr02&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#AN=502136641&db=ofs

Voigt, S. T. (2014). The Divergence of Modern Jurisprudence from the Original Intent for Federalist and Tenth Amendment Limitations on the Treaty Power. UNHL Rev , 12 (1), 85. https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/plr12&div=8&id=&page=

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StudyBounty. (2023, September 14). Federalism in Theory and Practice in the United States of America.
https://studybounty.com/federalism-in-theory-and-practice-in-the-united-states-of-america-essay

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