American Democracy in Context. Joseph A. Pika

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СКАЧАТЬ War, and shaped subsequent civil rights policies.

      Those debates have never gone away. They were at the forefront of whether Congress, during the Progressive Era of the 1890s to the 1920s, could pass legislation protecting employees in the workplace through laws regulating things such as minimum wages, child labor, and maximum hours. Embracing dual federalism, the Supreme Court mostly said no.

      As the United States struggled to emerge from the depths of the Great Depression in the 1930s, the debate turned to whether the New Deal legislation implemented by President Franklin Roosevelt and his fellow Democrats in Congress was constitutional. Until 1936, the answer was, again, mostly no. That changed with the “switch in time” in 1937. That switch not only meant that New Deal legislation designed to regulate the economy was upheld but also that workplace regulations that had been routinely struck down for decades were now deemed constitutional.

      Today, many of the most controversial aspects of federalism deal with social issues such as same-sex marriage, gun control, health care reform, education, immigration, and the legalization of marijuana. Far from being uninteresting, we believe that federalism—throughout our history—has involved some of the most fascinating and relevant issues one can imagine. Certainly, these policies relate to you on a daily basis: what you studied in high school, who you can marry, at what age you can drink alcohol, how fast you can drive, whether or not there is a minimum wage, and whether you can be discriminated against in a hotel because of your race, to name only a few. Just as profoundly, federalism will shape your future. After all, things such as Social Security and Medicare would not have been possible without the “switch in time.” Think about that the next time someone says that federalism is boring or unimportant. In fact, few aspects of our governmental system have a greater impact on your daily life.

      Critical Thinking Questions

      1 As you follow current events, ask yourself: How do perspectives on federalism influence what policies can be implemented concerning those issues?

      2 One’s decision about whether to support states’ rights or national supremacy sometimes varies according to the policy issue in question. For example, some conservatives who otherwise support states’ rights balk at the idea of allowing states to recognize same-sex marriage or approve the use of marijuana. Can such discrepancies be reconciled?

      3 Think back to the opening vignette of this chapter. What are the pros and cons of sanctuary cities? How do the actions of sanctuary jurisdictions illustrate federalism in action?

      4 Did the framers make the right choice when they created a federal system in this country? Did the Supreme Court make the right choice with its “switch in time” in 1937?

      Key Terms

       block grants, 69

       categorical grants, 69

       commerce clause, 63

       concurrent powers, 59

       confederal system, 55

       cooperative federalism, 62

       dual federalism, 61

       extradition clause, 60

       federal system, 55

       full faith and credit clause, 60

       interstate compacts, 60

       necessary and proper (elastic) clause, 58

       nullification, 64

       police powers, 58

       privileges and immunities clause, 60

       reserved powers, 58

       secession, 65

       supremacy clause, 58

       Tenth Amendment, 58

       unfunded mandate, 69

       unitary system, 55

      Descriptions of Images and Figures

      Back to Figure

      The details are as follows.

       Unitary system:A central government with arrows pointing to several state/local governmentsThe central government is sovereign, with no legal superior. It may create state governments and delegate legal authority to them. It can also eliminate such governments.

       Confederal system:A central government which receives arrows pointing from various several state/local governmentsAn alliance exists among independent sovereign governments, which delegate limited authority to a central government of their making. The independent sovereign governments retain sovereignty, with no legal superior, over all matters they do not delegate to the central government.

       Federal system:A constitution is on top from which arrows point down to a central government and several state/local governments.State governments are sovereign in specified matters, and a central government is sovereign in other specified matters. The matters over which each government is sovereign are set forth in a constitution, which is the supreme law of the land.

      Back to Figure

      The federations of the world are as follows.

      Canada, United States, Venezuela, Brazil, Argentina, Austria, Germany, Belgium Switzerland, Spain, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, Comoros, Ethiopia, Somalia, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Malaysia, and Australia.

      Back to image

      The painting shows an aerial view of the waterways, which form the center of the illustration. The city is depicted in the foreground while the background shows the sea. The waterway is shown to be quite busy with several steamboats, large and small sail ships, and even a few tug boats plying.

      Back to Figure

      The horizontal axis shows the years from 1996 to 2017 and the vertical axis shows the percent from 0 to 80 in increments of 20.

      The two graph lines expressing opposite opinions are the mirror image of each other, one showing a rising trend and the other a dipping trend.

      Should not be valid: This line starts at close to 70% in 1996, gradually dropping down to finish at 32 in 2017.

      Should be valid: This line starts at around 27% in 1996 and rises slowly to finish at about 65 % in 2017.

      Note: How has public opinion about same-sex marriage changed since the Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell?

      Back to Figure

      The details are as follows.

      Medical marijuana broadly legalized: Montana, Utah, Arizona, Hawaii, New Mexico, North Dakota, Minnesota, Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, СКАЧАТЬ