The film, ‘An Empire of Reason’ (2018) seeks to unfold the events that transpired and the debate that ensued over the issue of having a unified America under one government or having very powerful states with a distant government. Far from that, the documentary, through the arguments of various stakeholders, provides the merits and demerits of using a single currency, a Bill of Rights, and federal income tax. Although the states were united under one powerful government, debate still rages on even in the contemporary political discourse. This article illuminates on the history of the debate, the major constraints under the debate, as well as how major agreements or resolutions were struck out.
First, it is essential to understand the meaning of federalism as well as the major tenets that define it. Drake & Nelson (1999) define federalism as a type of government whereby the constitution dispenses powers and authority between the central government and minor regional governments. The small regional governments are popularly referred to as states or provinces. Under the federal form of governance, both the central government and the states have significant responsibilities and authority such as the power to collect taxes as well as to pass and implement laws that regulate the conduct of people.
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Just to provide a background, all the states in the US prior to the union ruled themselves with little authority or control from the main government. Almost everything was different from one state to another. The states were often assisted by the local governments they created. The local governments would perform functions such as imposing taxes, fight fires, set laws pertaining to marriage, run public schools as well as set rules for the elections and registration of voters. But some opinion leaders reasoned out that if some functions were left entirely to the state governments, the operations of the national government would be jeopardized (Drake & Nelson, 1999). The interests of the state governments and the central governments would collide if certain measures were not taken. For instance, a state like Alabama had some of the toughest anti-immigrant laws that required police officers to ask for identification from citizens from time to time. Even young children would be required to provide identification documents when required to do so. Other aspects where the states and the central government would collide included the tax laws and the Bill of rights. Such issues were so pertinent if the central government was to continue being in existence.
American federalism began when the thirteen states, which had signed the independence declaration in 1776, united to create a national government in 1781 under the Articles of Confederation. The Confederation declared that the states had entered into firm friendship with one another but that they would retain the power and authority they had. This meant that their union was only partial; they did not have an overall authority that would guide them in their mandate. It also meant that the states continued to be significantly different in all aspects. The stipulation of such an agreement was an evident crisis if the ‘national’ government was to be in existence. One of the critical questions that most stakeholders posed was, then what was the role of the national government? Definitely the national government needed some powers to prove its validity. There was therefore the need of a stronger national government that would have authority to control certain critical aspects. The dilemma consequently resulted to the agitation for reconsideration of the Articles. Nazir (2014) says that the national government depended on the goodwill of the states to discharge its mandate. For instance, the national government had numerous functional and institutional constraints. The most prominent issues that made the national government ineffective and inefficient were that it lacked separate judicial and executive branches, it had no control over taxation and no power to control commerce.
Perhaps the union of 1781 had been an idea that now needed to be put into action. Several steps began to be made as a result of the challenges that were experienced by the national government. For instance, the Land Ordinance was passed by the Confederation Congress in 1785 and stipulated the provisions about general land ownership and survey (Empire of Reason, 2018). Although, a few positive steps were made, the national government found it increasingly difficult to discharge its responsibility. In the mid-1780s, the Confederation faced the threat of splitting into three regions; New England, Southern and Middle-Atlantic (Drake & Nelson, 1999).
The political and the economic conditions deteriorated and there were more demands for constitutional changes. There was even a rebellion in Massachusetts by debt-ridden soldiers. Such intense pressure compelled American leaders to think of a solution which would solve such issues. A group of individuals who called themselves federalists managed to consolidate support for a powerful central government and called for a constitutional convention in 1787 (Nazir, 2014). It is from that convention that the federal constitution was created which became officially operational in 1789 after it was ratified by the states. Some of the prominent leaders that supported the establishment of a strong federal government were George Washington, John Adams, and Alexander Hamilton. Thomas Jefferson on the contrary was the most vocal anti-federalist. The establishment of the federal government led to the creation of a Bill of Rights, control of income tax and use of a single currency, among other critical issues.
Summarily, the history of the American federalism is an outline of events that led to the formation of a strong central government. The citizens in all the states identified themselves as being part of the larger national government but the central government only existed as a name rather than being recognized by the functions it did. The process started in 1781 when thirteen states that had declared themselves independent agreed to form a union. The overall government however, was limited in its capacity to carry out certain tasks. Mounting pressure eventually led to the creation of a stronger federal government in 1789 that gained more control over certain critical functions.
References
Nazir, M. (2014) Major Trends In American Federalism: A Study Of Pre-Civil War Period. Pu.edu.pk . Retrieved 29 March 2018, from http://pu.edu.pk/images/journal/HistoryPStudies/PDF-FILES/4%20Muntazra%20Nazeer_v27No1june2014.pdf
Drake, F. D., & Nelson, L. R. (Eds.). (1999). States' rights and American federalism: A documentary history . Greenwood Publishing Group.
Empire of Reason . (2018). YouTube . Retrieved 29 March 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV1G8_CzJhs
