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Articles of Confederation
These articles increased the state powers because that is what it generally promoted. It didn't provide for a strong executive system, it showed fears of having one central government. These articles weakened the federal government because with this document they basically didn't have the power to do anything. -
Elastic Clause or Necessary and Proper Clause
This clause allowed more power to be allocated to the federal system because it made them have more power to make legislative in their favor, as long as it was deemed necessary and proper. This clause was feared by the people because they felt as though it gave Congress too much power. -
Constitutional Convention
This increased federal power because much of the constitution states the powers that the federal system would have that is why some states disagreed with it because they felt as though they wouldn't have all the rights promised to them. This increased the struggle between state and federal because the states were trying to be equal with the national system but that wasn't an ideal plan and wouldn't work out because one system needed supremacy or there would be a constant struggle for power. -
10th Amendment
The 10th amendment are the powers that are reserved to the states or to the people. This increased the state powers because it says that the federal government only has powers specifically granted in the Constitution, the states don't have those limitations. -
McCulloch v Maryland
This court case was important because it dealt with the national bank and whether or not the Maryland bank could tax the national bank. This was found to be unconstitutional because the national bank has the supremacy to the Maryland bank, therefore, power cannot go in the opposite direction. This increased federal power because it stated that states did not have the right to tax the national bank and that the federal government was supreme -
Gibbons v. Ogden
This court hearing was important because it was an argument about whether state laws could be passed that were not in relation to federal laws. This ruling was important because it increased federal power by saying that the states could not pass legislation that was not in line with the federal laws that were already passed. -
Civil War
This increased federal power because it was basically states against each other. The federal government was able to stop it, even with all the damage that was done by the states during this time period. This increased federal power because the federal system was the one that got to decide what the overall outcome would be like. The Union winning allowed for anti-discriminatory laws to occur on the federal level. -
14th Amendment
This amendment shows the federal power because this amendment basically voided the state legislatures when dealing with the citizenship of Americans. This was a big amendment because it was controversial towards the big former slave states. -
Plessy v Ferguson
This case argued whether the "Separate Car Act" violated the 14th amendment. The results were that it was constitutional and that segregation did not violate any constitutional laws and wasn't considered unlawful discrimination. This increased state power because they were able to practice segregation with support from the federal government. It strengthened the state power by ruling that a state could implement laws that featured separate but equal properties. -
Pure Food and Drug Act
This Act allowed more federal power because now they were responsible for the safety of foods and drugs. They took that responsibility away from states and took over that aspect of the consumer experience. It limited states because now there were restrictions and requirements set in place to protect the consumer. -
16th Amendment
The 16th Amendment allowed for the levying of taxes with apportioning the states, without regard to the census. This proved to be a huge source of the federal revenue so it impacted the federal government and showed the power that they had over the states because they were allowed to pass this amendment. -
Gitlow v. New York
This court hearing was formed because Gitlow was passing around socialist manifestos to the public. This violated the New York Criminal Anarchy Law and the state of New York decided to arrest and send to trial. This court case strengthened the state power because New York had the right to stop Gitlow from distributing material that was in violation of their law. Selective incorporation is a doctrine that ensures states won't use laws that take away the rights of citizens in the Bill of Rights. -
The New Deal
The New Deal was a set of federal programs to help restart the economy and bring it back to its former glory before the Great Depression. It expanded the federal government significantly because they needed more power in order to keep all these programs up and running. It changed the power because it allowed people to believe that the government was supposed to provide for the welfare of the people and not only the individual state and local governments. -
Brown v. Board of Education
This court case relates to the desegregation of public schools because of race. It was ruled that this violated the Equal Protection Clause in the 14th amendment. This increased federal power because it overruled what the states had previously been going by and they had to end the segregation in their states because the Supreme Court said that it was unconstitutional. -
Civil Rights Act of 1964
It increased federal power because it was an umbrella in order to stop discrimination across the United States. It overruled many state legislative and increased the struggle for power between federal and states because some states might not have agreed with this act. -
Economic Opportunity Act of 1964
It established the Head Start Program, a program designed to allow kids to prepare for the future and be successful in the future when starting elementary, middle, high school, and higher education. This strengthened the federal power because it allowed for more support for the federal government. However, it also allowed local governments to start Head State programs in their locality -
Roe v Wade
This court case argued whether a woman could terminate her pregnancy by abortion and whether it was constitutional. The ruling was that Texan law was trying to override her ninth amendment right. This increased federal power because it was proven that a state law cannot be more powerful than a federal law. It strengthened the federal government by yet again proving that the federal system had supremacy over the state legislative system. -
Election of Ronald Reagan
This election was positive for state government because he enacted the largest tax cuts in US history at the time and much of his policies strengthened the state governments. He also had policies that reduced regulation, tighten money supply to reduce inflation, and reduce government spending. This weakened some of the power that the federal government had. -
Americans with Disabilities Act
The ADA increased federal power, however, it cannot override state health care legislative unless it conflicts with the requirements of the ADA. This proved to be good for the federal government because everyone was now under one umbrella act and didn't have to worry about different state policies. -
Planned Parenthood v Casey
This court case argued whether it was constitutional for individuals who wanted an abortion to notify their spouse or, if a minor, their parents. The ruling for this case was that they should have to inform someone. This increased state power because the Pennsylvania Planned Parenthood was able to make legislation that upheld the constitution without interfering with the federal government. -
United States v Lopez
Lopez, a Texan 12th grader, was charged with carrying a concealed weapon into a school and originally charged with a state offense. However, the next day the charges were dropped and replaced with a federal charge with the Gun-Free School Zone Act of 1990. This increased state power because it was unconstitutional for Congress to express that much power. They couldn't charge Lopez under the Commerce Clause because bringing a weapon to a local school district won't affect interstate relations. -
104th Congress
They did a lot of policy changes within the first 100 days. Issues were brought to the table such as deregulation, devolution, and downsizing. However, this group worked surprisingly well together, despite the differences in ideas. Even though they had drastic differences in the Democratic and Republican party they managed, even if it was months later, to come to compromises. -
Printz v. United States
This court hearing was about whether police officers should do background checks should be allowed on people wanting to purchase handguns. These results were that the necessary and proper clause did not apply to police officers. This increased state power because it limited the things that people could do on the necessary and proper clause. -
No Child Left Behind
The No Child Left Behind Act was signed into law on January 8th, 2002. This act set out requirements for states to follow about testing. It allowed requirements for testing, progress reports, teaching requirements. It increased federal power because they now controlled more aspects of state's education. The states now had less flexibility to do their own thing about their own state's education -
Development of the Department of Homeland Security
This development was in response to the September 11th terrorist attacks against the nation. It protected people from terrorist attacks, provided assistance with natural disasters, and catastrophic disasters. This weakened state government because more people were able to put their trust in the federal government for protection because Homeland Security basically oversaw everything that went on in the nation as a whole and not just in individual states.
