govt 2306 ch 2

Front: What is a confederation?

Back: A system of government in which lower-level units (states) retain most authority and can significantly limit the national government.

Front: Why did the Articles of Confederation fail?

Back: The national government lacked power to tax directly, states often refused to provide funds, and states could make their own treaties with foreign nations.

Front: What is a unitary system of government?

Back: A system in which the national government holds all authority and lower-level governments are merely extensions of the national government.

Front: How does federalism differ from a confederation and a unitary system?

Back: Federalism divides power between the national government and the states, placing it between the extremes of a confederation and a unitary system.

Front: How does the Constitution balance power between the federal government and the states?

Back: By granting the federal government only enumerated powers and reserving all remaining powers to the states.

Front: What are enumerated powers?

Back: Powers specifically listed in the Constitution and granted to the federal government, mainly found in Article I, Section 8.

Front: What are examples of enumerated powers?

Back: Coining money, raising an army, establishing a postal system, regulating interstate and foreign commerce, and making treaties.

Front: What are police powers?

Back: Powers reserved to the states to regulate for the health, safety, and welfare of their citizens.

Front: What is an example of a police power?

Back: Deciding whether to allow lottery games or casino gambling.

Front: What are concurrent powers?

Back: Powers shared by both the federal government and the states, such as the power to raise taxes.

Front: What is the Supremacy Clause?

Back: A clause in Article VI stating that when federal and state laws conflict, federal law prevails.

Front: What happens when a state law conflicts with federal law?

Back: The state law is null and void under the Supremacy Clause.

Front: How has the Supreme Court expanded the interpretation of the Supremacy Clause?

Back: By ruling that even federal decisions not to regulate can preempt state action.

Front: What was the issue in Arizona v. United States (2012)?

Back: Whether Arizona’s immigration enforcement laws were preempted by federal immigration policy.

Front: What did the Supreme Court rule in Arizona v. United States?

Back: The Arizona laws were invalid because federal immigration law preempted state action under the Supremacy Clause.

Front: What is the Necessary and Proper Clause?

Back: A clause in Article I, Section 8 granting Congress the power to pass laws necessary and proper to carry out its enumerated powers.

Front: What constitutional issue was addressed in McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)?

Back: Whether Congress could establish a national bank and whether a state could tax it

Front: How did McCulloch v. Maryland interpret the Necessary and Proper Clause?

Back: It allows Congress to exercise implied powers necessary to carry out its enumerated powers.

Front: Why was Maryland not allowed to tax the national bank?

Back: Because the Supremacy Clause prevents states from interfering with legitimate federal actions.

Front: Why is McCulloch v. Maryland significant?

Back: It established broad federal authority and showed the Supreme Court favoring national power over state power.

Front: Who were the Federalists?

Back: Supporters of a strong national government who favored ratification of the Constitution.

Front: Who were the Anti-Federalists?

Back: Opponents of a strong national government who wanted to preserve state power.

Front: Why was the Bill of Rights added to the Constitution?

Back: To secure ratification by addressing Anti-Federalist concerns and protecting individual and state rights.

Front: What does the Tenth Amendment state?

Back: Powers not delegated to the federal government are reserved to the states and the people.

Front: How has the Supreme Court generally treated the Tenth Amendment?

Back: As a truism that restates the Constitution’s structure rather than granting new powers to states.

Front: What is incorporation?

Back: The process by which the Bill of Rights has been applied to limit state governments through the Fourteenth Amendment.

Front: What role does the Fourteenth Amendment play in federalism?

Back: It limits state power by applying individual rights protections against the states.

Front: What is the most recent Bill of Rights provision incorporated against the states?

Back: The Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment in Timbs v. Indiana (2019).

Front: What does the Commerce Clause allow Congress to do?

Back: Regulate commerce between states and with foreign nations.

Front: How has the Commerce Clause affected federal power over time?

Back: It became the primary justification for the expansion of national power.

Front: What was the issue in Wickard v. Filburn (1942)?

Back: Whether the federal government could regulate wheat grown for personal consumption.

Front: What did the Court decide in Wickard v. Filburn?

Back: Congress could regulate the activity because it affected interstate commerce in the aggregate.

Front: Why is Wickard v. Filburn important?

Back: It greatly expanded Congress’s power under the Commerce Clause.

Front: What trend did the Supreme Court show in the 1990s regarding the Commerce Clause?

Back: A desire to place some limits on federal power.

Front: What is the overall historical trend of federalism in the United States?

Back: A gradual accumulation of power by the national government at the expense of the states.

Front: How did federalism function before the Civil War?

Back: States generally defended their powers successfully, and the national government remained small and limited.

Front: What role did the Supreme Court play in early federalism?

Back: It often sided with the federal government but within a limited national scope.

Front: Why were states largely able to regulate domestic matters before the Civil War?

Back: The economy was localized, making state-level regulation practical.

Front: Why did Southern states strongly defend states’ rights?

Back: They feared increased federal power would threaten slavery.

Front: What issue most directly precipitated the Civil War?

Back: Whether new states would allow slavery and the resulting balance of power in the U.S. Senate.

Front: What was the Missouri Compromise of 1820?

Back: A temporary compromise to balance slave and non-slave states in the Union.

Front: What was decided in Scott v. Sanford (1857)?

Back: Slaves and former slaves could never be U.S. citizens, and Congress lacked authority to regulate slavery in new states.

Front: Why is Scott v. Sanford considered significant?

Back: It invalidated prior compromises and intensified sectional conflict.

Front: What federalism question did the Civil War ultimately resolve?

Back: It resolved the balance of power in favor of the federal government.

Front: Which Reconstruction Amendment is most important for state-federal relations?

Back: The Fourteenth Amendment.

Front: How did industrialization affect federalism after the Civil War?

Back: It created national problems requiring national solutions.

Front: What is a race-to-the-bottom?

Back: A situation where states sacrifice policy goals to remain economically competitive.

Front: How did child labor illustrate a race-to-the-bottom?

Back: States avoided banning child labor for fear neighboring states would gain a competitive advantage.

Front: Why did national solutions become necessary after the Civil War?

Back: Many problems were national in scope and could not be solved by individual states acting alone.

Front: What are grants-in-aid?

Back: Federal funds given to states with conditions attached.

Front: Why are grants-in-aid important to federalism?

Back: They allow Congress to influence state policies.

Front: What did the Sixteenth Amendment accomplish?

Back: It gave the federal government the power to tax incomes, increasing federal financial resources.

Front: How did the Great Depression affect federalism?

Back: It greatly accelerated the transfer of power to the federal government.

Front: What percentage did unemployment reach during the Great Depression?

Back: Approximately 25% in 1933.

Front: What types of policies did FDR’s New Deal include?

Back: Regulation of labor conditions, product quality, prices, welfare, and unions.

Front: How did the Supreme Court initially respond to New Deal programs?

Back: It struck down many programs as exceeding federal authority.

Front: What was decided in NLRB v. Jones & Laughlin Steel (1937)?

Back: Congress could regulate labor relations under the Commerce Clause.

Front: Why was Jones & Laughlin Steel significant?

Back: It marked a broad interpretation of the Commerce Clause.

Front: How long did the Supreme Court refrain from invalidating Commerce Clause laws after 1937?

Back: Until 1995.

Front: How did World War II affect federalism?

Back: It strengthened the national government through massive coordination and spending.

Front: What is cooperative federalism?

Back: A system in which state and federal governments work together, with federal leadership.

Front: What major policies defined LBJ’s domestic agenda?

Back: Civil Rights Act, Voting Rights Act, Medicare, and Medicaid.

Front: Why did the 1960s see renewed centralization of power?

Back: The declining influence of Southern whites reduced resistance to federal action.

Front: What is a block grant?

Back: Federal funding given to states or localities with broad discretion over administration.

Front: What is a criticism of block grants?

Back: The federal government cannot tightly control how funds are spent.

Front: What is a matching grant?

Back: Federal funds that match state spending, often at a multiple rate.

Front: Why do matching grants encourage state spending?

Back: States receive additional federal funds for each dollar they spend.

Front: Why do matching grants help prevent race-to-the-bottom dynamics?

Back: They set a national spending floor across states.

Front: What is an unfunded mandate?

Back: A federal requirement imposed on states without providing funding.

Front: How did Congress incentivize states to raise the drinking age to 21?

Back: By threatening to withhold federal highway funding.

Front: How has polarization affected federalism?

Back: It has increased conflict and reduced cooperation between states and the federal government.

Front: How do state attorneys general use federalism in polarized politics?

Back: They frequently sue the federal government when opposing parties are in power.

Front: What did United States v. Lopez (1995) decide?

Back: Congress exceeded its Commerce Clause authority by banning guns in school zones.

Front: Why is United States v. Lopez important?

Back: It placed limits on federal power under the Commerce Clause.

Front: Why is federal land ownership controversial in the West?

Back: Disputes exist over whether land should benefit the nation as a whole or local populations.

Front: Which federal agencies manage most public lands?

Back: The Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service.

Front: How do Western residents typically view federal land?

Back: They often want it managed for local economic benefit.

Front: How did early federal land policy differ from later policy?

Back: Early policy encouraged private ownership; later policy emphasized conservation.

Front: Who was Cliven Bundy?

Back: A rancher who resisted federal land regulations and sparked an armed standoff.

Front: What constitutional claim did Bundy make?

Back: That federal ownership of land was unconstitutional.

Front: How do political parties differ on federal land ownership?

Back: Democrats favor federal ownership and conservation; Republicans favor local control.

Front: Why might states resist taking ownership of federal land?

Back: Maintenance costs would be extremely high.