The Specific Powers Vested in the Federal Government by the U.S Constitution - Essay Example

The Specific Powers Vested in the Federal Government by the U.S Constitution The First Article, Section Eight of the U.S Constitution specifies some of the powers of that the Congress has as well as the responsibilities of the Congress. There are many powers of the federal government enumerated in American constitution but the most important is the power to collect taxes and tariffs among other sources of federal revenue and it also has the power to authorize the expenditure of all federal funds. More so, the constitution also states that the Congress has the power to regulate many aspects of economy, the power to coin money, create postal service, navy, determine naturalization, and declare war among others (Ginsberg, Lowi and Weir 41). This essay discusses the specific powers vested in the federal government by the U.S. Constitution and it also assesses why these powers were vested in the federal government. Some of the powers vested in the federal government by the U.S Constitution outlined in Article 1, Section 8 include the power to collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises uniformly throughout the United States and these will assist in paying the debts. According to the constitution, the federal government has the authority to control money and collect taxes but this should be done uniformly, that is, no state should be charged more for imports than the other. Another power vested in the federal government by the constitution is the power to borrow money on the credit of the United States, that is, the Congress is allowed to go into debts in order to pay for government programs and services. More so, the American constitution states that the federal government has the authority to control commerce with foreign nations, and among the several states as well as the Indian tribes and this implies that the federal government has the authority to regulate both interstate and international business activities. Therefore, the constitution allows the government to regulate all kinds of economic activities within states. In addition, the constitution states that the federal government has the authority to launch a uniform rule of naturalization so that no one is discriminated or prevented from becoming American citizens because of their nationalities. More so, the Congress has the power to set uniform laws on the matter of bankruptcies all over the United States and this allows the Congress to come up with a process that enables immigrants to become American citizens. More so, this clause allows the Congress to establish rules for indebted individuals and various firms to declare bankruptcy. Moreover, according to the U.S Constitution, the federal government has the power to change money, regulates the value of foreign coin and resolve the standard of weights and procedures and this clause allows the Congress to control the minting of money and set its value. In addition, the constitution gives the federal government the mandate to develop post offices and construct roads connecting them. Nevertheless, the constitution gave the Congress the power to promote the progress of science and useful arts by establishing a system of copyrights and patents which grant creative individuals exclusive right to sell theory own creations. More so, the federal government has the power to define and deal with cases of piracies and other offences against the law of nations and ensure that the perpetrations are punished accordingly. In addition, the constitution grants the Congress the power to declare war and this is a very important matter that only the Congress has the power to decide and so declaring war in case of any external attack or invasions is the responsibility of the Congress. Again, only the Congress has the power to raise and support armies, that is, the government has the authority to pay for military actions and the government also has the power to refuse paying for military actions. More so, the constitution also grants federal government the power to decline funding military operations for more than two years. Furthermore, the constitution gives the Congress the power to call out for militia also known as the National Guard to defend the nation from any attack or invasion. The Congress is responsible for the payment of the militia and governing of their actions and it also has the authority to provide and maintain a navy and also to set rules for behaviors of armed forces. The power of the Congress to control the naturalization of non-citizens and other powers are deeply rooted in the early history of the United States. The framers of the U.S Constitution in 1787 created a foundation for modern federalism and the current constitution grants the federal government specific powers which allows the government to be in control of many operations. Framers of the U.S Constitution prioritized the tax power because they were aware that the old Articles of Confederation did not give Congress the power to tax and unlike the Articles of Confederation, federalism was a step towards centralization of power (Ginsberg, Lowi and Weir 46). In addition, the government to go on debts to be able to fund government programs and services, but this has been rarely witnessed in American history. More so, war power is very important for the federal government as it allows the Congress to have control of immigration and declare war as well as excluding enemy aliens. The issue of naturalization and immigration are very critical to the national security and so giving the federal government exclusive authority to have control on naturalization and immigrants so as to ensure that those individuals allowed to be American citizens have no illegal records or are threat to the country’s security. Furthermore, giving the federal government the authority to establish post office and post roads is appropriate because post office is believed to be one of the most important and the largest institutions within the federal government. By giving the federal government all these powers, the framers of the constitution wanted the new government to be more powerful than the previous ones (Ginsberg, Lowi and Weir 42). In conclusion, there are many specific powers that the U.S Constitution gives the federal government some of which include the power to control and collects taxes and tariffs. Control economic activities within states; regulate interstate and international business; control immigration among others. The framers of the constitution granted all these powers to the federal government to ensure that it becomes more powerful than the previous governments. Works Cited Ginsberg, Lowi, Weir, Tolbert, and Spitzer, Robert.chapters 1-3. We the people: an introduction to the American politics. W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2013. Print. Read More