The Powers of the National government and the State government
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The constitution influences the national government and the states through the division of power between the state government and the national government. This is what is known as Federalism. According to Article 1, section 8, of the constitution, Federalism allows expressed and implied powers to be exercised. Expressed powers are those that apply specifically to all citizens of a country while the implied powers are those powers that are not specifically stated but are implied through the interpretation of delegated powers.
In Article VI of the constitution, it is clear that whenever conflict emerges between the state government and national government, the national administration will always win. But thanks to the Tenth Amendment of the constitution also known as “the reserved powers”, the national governments’ powers are limited. Through reserved powers, the states can retain the power of coercion, the power to regulate the livelihoods of people, and the power of ownership of private property. These powers affect the day to day lives of the citizens and this is a plus for the state government as compared to the national government.
According to Article IV, section 1, the constitution talks of the full faith and credit clause. This involves same-sex marriages whereby it was declared a fundamental right by the supreme court, but some states refused to acknowledge its legalization. In 1966, the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was passed by congress. In addition to that, DOMA complained that the federal administration refused to support the recognition of same-sex marriage even if it was legalized in other states. Thus, the gay community was denied federal medical and social benefits.
In 2013 all this changed because of the ruling by the supreme court. The gay community was allowed access to federal benefits just like heterosexuals but it did not state whether same-sex marriage should be recognized in all the states. Through the fourteenth amendment of the constitution, the supreme court ruled that it recognized and acknowledged the right to same-sex marriage. Since then, same-sex marriage has been recognized as a national right for all gay couples.
National unity is discussed in Article IV, section 2, whereby citizens enjoy privileges and immunities when they move from one state to another. For instance, the supreme court ruled out the law that was passed by Alaska whereby the residents were entitled to more jobs in the states’ oil and gas, than the nonresidents. This was ruled as a discriminatory law and was therefore ruled illegal. Therefore, this law enabled states to live as one by ensuring that when a person moves from one state to another is treated equally with the residents of that state.
Conclusively, the constitution allows federalism which is the division of power between the national and state government. It also allows the state government to possess some powers known as reserved powers that apply to the day to day lives of citizens. The constitution also allowed for the full faith and credit clause whereby, gay marriages are legally recognized and the gay community can enjoy federal benefits just like the heterosexuals do. The constitution has also allowed national unity to be exercised through Article IV, section 2, of the constitution and all citizens from different states, are able to enjoy privileges and immunities just like the residents of the particular state they visit.
Reference
Federalism Shapes American Politics.