Over the long term, has state power increaded r decreased in relation to that of the federal government - Essay Example

Task: Power In the American constitution, it is stipulated that there shall be both and federal governments. These instruments are meant to play different roles for the benefit of the citizens. Therefore, this discussion is going to explain why state power has decreased in relation to that of the federal government1. Over the long term, I think state power has decreased in relation to that of the federal government because of many reasons. For instance, there has been increased growth of the national federal government in terms of how it controls its commerce, trade, welfare funds and other resources through distribution to states.

Similarly, it has acquired most of state powers such as the mandate to control inter-state commerce, the autonomy to agree on treatises with foreign countries and the authority to form an arm and declare war on enemies2. Additionally, the federal government has becoming powerful resulting to undesired incidents such as the Civil unrest or war which strengthened unions, the Great Depression which instituted bureaucracies for assisting the suffering Americans and Civil Rights Movement that called for intervention at the state level to reduce rampant cases of racism against blacks.

Furthermore, because of the protection of Constitutional powers, the federal government has usurped state powers in terms of fundamental rights and freedoms enjoyed by citizens. This is manifested in through federal courts that ensure violators of such rights and freedoms enshrined in the constitution are tried and convicted. On that note, state has been reduced to playing minor roles of supervising the federal government to avoid losing its independence and authority. In summary, in future, legal experts warn that state government will lose its entire autonomy and federal government will control the welfare of the country3.

Works CitedJudson, Fredrick. A Treatise on the Power of Taxation, State and Federal, in the United States. New Jersey: The Lawbook Exchange. 2007. Napolitano, Andrew. The Constitution in Exile: How the Federal Government Has Seized Power by Rewriting the Supreme Law of the Land. New York: Thomas Nelson Inc. 2007.