Federalism

Background

In The Federalist No. 51, James Madison wrote, “In the compound republic of America, the power surrendered by the people is first divided between two distinct governments.” Madison believed that by dividing sovereignty between the national government and the states, the Constitution ensured that “a double security arises to the rights of the people. The different governments will control each other, at the same time that each will be controlled by itself.” Thus, as the Supreme Court said in Texas v. White (1868),

According to a more recent decision of the Supreme Court, this division of sovereignty between the states and the national government “is a defining feature of our Nation's constitutional blueprint” (Federal Maritime Commission v. South Carolina State Ports Authority, 2002). The division of power between dual sovereigns, the states and the national government, is reflected throughout the Constitution's text, as well as its structure. The Supreme Court said, in Gregory v. Ashcroft (1991),

In other words, although the Constitution gives vast power to the national government, the national government remains one of enumerated, hence limited, powers. Indeed, “that these limits may not be mistaken, or forgotten, the constitution is written,” according to the landmark Marbury v. Madison (1803) ruling.

Because the federal balance of powers is so important, the Court has intervened to maintain the sovereign prerogatives of both the states and the national government. In order to preserve the sovereignty of the national government, the Court has prevented the states from imposing term limits on members of Congress and instructing members of Congress as to how to vote on certain issues. Similarly, it has invalidated state laws that infringe on the right to travel, that undermine the nation's foreign policy, and that exempt a state from generally applicable regulations of interstate commerce.

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