Type of Federalism - Essay Example

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in the US government is concerned with preventing and disrupting terrorist attacks, protecting American citizens from any aggression, protecting infrastructural facilities and resources in the US, and enforcing immigration laws. In order to do this, the department patrols borders regularly protect travelers, responds to emergencies and disasters, and also ensures that citizens are prepared for any form of emergency situations (Zimmerman, 2010). Cooperative federalism should be applied in homeland security issues since it would produce better results than the other types of federalism.

Cooperative federalism requires that the federal government, local governments, and state governments share responsibilities in governing the people. Therefore, applying cooperative federalism in the Department of Homeland security would ensure that all units of the federal government cooperate in ensuring that security of citizens is promoted and terrorism is combated from the grassroots. Cooperative Federalism would also ensure that illegal immigrations are prevented from local borders of all states.

This form of federalism would also ensure that the state’s resources and infrastructural facilities are protected from destruction from the lowest government unit to the highest. If such measures were only directed at the level of the federal government, the mission of the department would not be realized at the level of the local government and the state government. New Federalism is analogous to Cooperative Federalism since it entails devolution of power from the Federal government to the state government.

This type should also be applied by the DHS in solving issues as it would ensure that grass-root issues are solved. Permissive federalism should not be used by the DHS since it only allows the state government to exercise some powers that have been delegated by the central government. Dual Federalism should not be used since it requires that there is a clear demarcation of power between the Federal Government and state governments. Hence, state governments would not be mandated to conduct some roles of the DHS.

Therefore, Cooperative Federalism should be used in conducting affairs of the DHS as it is the most effective and efficient of federalism types.