Definition of Federalism and Its Long Evolution - Essay Example

? Federalism Federalism is defined as the division of government powers between the national and governments. In this sense, those in the governments cannot contradict the laws and the statutes formed by the national government and established within that particular government's constitution (Drake & Nelson). This means that there is a separation between independent powers but the national level has the ultimate say. Federalism is a large part of American history. Federalism is defined in the United States constitution and allows states to be their own individual branches of government. The states must abide by their own laws as long as the individual laws do not create conflict with foreign laws. Federalism has its advantages and disadvantages. Advantages of federalism include a states individual freedom. A state in America contains its own individual government. The individual government is able to act as its own but not to exceed laws on a national level. Disadvantages are that although a state may seem free, the state is limited to issues that are on a national level such as immigration and federal taxes. Federalism and American History The evolution of the federalist government went through many changes since the 18th century. Under the American experience, the federalist government was shaped specifically in the 1780s. This was when factions of Federalists and Anti-federalists created many debates and arguments about the acceptance of the American Constitution. This was concerning the issue of the rights and the powers of individual states with relations to the federal government (Drake & Nelson). The conflict between the two mentioned parties molded what came to be the future federal and state division. This is now known as the individual states that make up the United States. In order for these states to be different from one another, Federalism had to take place. Further changes within the established federal system extended towards the 19th century with the Supreme Court’s decision to amend the constitution. A desire to create a stronger national government was established and strengthened with several additional revisions to the flow of the government system.  In the 20th century, the growing power of the national government was due to the influences of World War I, World War II, the Great Depression, The Civil Rights movements and The Cold War.  An important point to the evolution of the American federal government happened during the Clinton administration in 1996 where a “Devolution Revolution” was implemented in order to distribute the powers of economic regulations and social welfare from the national government down to the state governments.  Federalism is what created just cause for amendments of the constitution. Even after every state became ratified as part of the Constitution of the United States of America, there were still many issues that played a role toward Federalism in America. Federalism is a piece of American history that was fought for by Americans to create a nation that is free and separate from previous British government. The 10th Amendment American federalism is mainly fueled by the 10th Amendment of the American Constitution. The 10th Amendment states that, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people...” (Charters of Freedom: The Bill of Rights). The mentioned amendment is interpreted such that the powers not given to the national or the federal government will be obviously and naturally given to the state governments and the people as their principle. Therefore, constitutionally and in this way lawfully, the American federal government clearly upholds its principle of giving the administrative power to the people. Democracy is then intertwined with the type of government that the American people have. After all, it is because of the people that the government exists, not the other way around. Federalism Further Defined With federalism as the America's system of government and the basis for the separation of power, it is an interesting notion to understand how this type of government works. As what was briefly explained in the definition of federalism in the previous paragraphs, the American federal government functions with national and state government at the top of the hierarchy of administrative powers. Then directly below it, in equal footing, the varying state government follows. Each state government has its own constitution and sets of laws created by its specific state legislation, state judiciary and state administration. However, the liberty of the state governments is removed because it is imperative for the state governments to comply with the statutes, laws and the constitution of the national government. The power and authority of the national government are handled by the national legislation, the Senate and Congress, the national judiciary and also Supreme Court (Drake & Nelson). The federalist government also has several types of government common to its distinct system. An example of this is the complete American government system. The federal system and the unitary system possess a national government and several state governments. The existence of state governments depends on the how they adapt with that of the national government. This means that the national government can individually create or destroy state governments and its rights. A federal system must make conscience decisions. The decisions must be created in order for the national government to create a new state government. To add to this, a unique feature of the unitary system is that the state government can individually create a new state government without the consent of the national government through the process of devolution (Bulletin Board Q&A). Another example comparable to the federal system is the co federal system. Like the unitary system, both the co federation and the federal systems have central or national governments and state governments. What is distinct about the co federation system is that the national government of a co federal nation has no direct authority over its state governments. The state governments do not elect for the members of the national legislature; instead, the state governments appoint representatives to the national legislature. In addition, the state governments don’t pay taxes to the national government. The national government has its direct control only to those states that pay assessments to fund their national government. The system of the co federation government is entirely different from the federal system where the state governments elect for representatives in the national legislation and where each state government pays their taxes directly to the national government (Bulletin Board Q&A). No matter how different the forms of governments are, the federal system of government is one of which that greatly supports the plea of the people for democracy and a just separation of powers. It is one of which any US citizen's voice would be heard and could affect the affairs of the federal government as a entirely. Conclusion Federalism is an important part of American history. Federalism has shaped American in to the separate state and national government it is today. This type of governing has come with a just history that shows Federalism is a good thing. Amending the constitution and law changes by different American presidents were important in creating a federalist government that coincides with a national government. It is likely that America would not be how it is today without the evolution of Federalism. Works Cited “Bulletin Board Q&A.” Userpages.umbc.edu. Userpages, n.d. Web.  22 March 2011. “Charters of Freedom: The Bill of Rights.” Archives.gov. Archives, n.d. Web. 22 March 2011. Drake, Frederick D., and Lynn R. Nelson. “Teaching about Federalism in the United States. ERIC Digest.” ERIC Clearinghouse for Social Studies/Social Science Education Bloomington IN, Mar. 2005. Web. 22 March 2011.     Read More