Research paper essay

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English Composition I

Research Essay

20 November 2017

The Balance Between Federal and State Governments

Can the Federal Government create a national speed limit? How about a unified age for

drivers’ licenses? Is there an even balance between the National and State Governments?

According to Rob Bishop, Utah’s former Speaker of the House, the Federal Government has

become over-involved in states’ affairs, thus causing an imbalance in the Federal System. In Utah,

for instance, the Federal Government gives seventy-two cents towards Medicaid for every dollar

Utah spends. However, via specific Medicaid restrictions, the Federal Government is able to

manipulate Utah’s ability to provide quality medical assistance (Bishop). Throughout history there

have constantly been arguments over determining balance between national and state powers. It

became obvious that the Country required definitive guidance with respect to this fundamental

issue. During the Civil War, the States challenged the authority of the Federal Government;

however, when the North won, the Federal Government asserted its supremacy over the States.

Through a series of landmark decisions, the Supreme Court created a system to ensure balance and

boundaries between the Federal and Sate Governments. From 1819 to 1857, McCulloch vs.

Maryland, Dred Scott vs. Sanford, Gibbons vs. Ogden shaped the separation of powers between

the Federal Government and the individual states. The outcomes of Supreme Court cases

McCulloch vs. Maryland, Dred Scott vs. Sanford, and Gibbons vs. Ogden prove that there is a

balance between the Federal and State Governments.

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In McCulloch vs. Maryland (1819), the state of Maryland taxed a Federal Bank. Court Case

McCulloch vs. Maryland stemmed from Congress’s establishment of a Federal Bank, the Second

Bank of the U.S. When Congress established the B.U.S., its constitutionality was questioned.

During the Great Depression, many states, including Maryland, were forced to shut down their

banks. The states blamed the Second Bank of the United Stated for shutting down their banks.

Thus, out of resentment, Maryland decided to tax the Federal Bank. Maryland sued James

McCulloch, who was the cashier of Maryland’s Federal Bank branch, when he did not pay the tax.

The Federal Government believed that Maryland State performed an illegal action. The Supreme

Court agreed, ruling that no state could tax a Federal Institution. As John Marshal stated, “the

Government of the Union, though limited in its powers, is supreme within its sphere of action, and

its laws, when made in pursuance of the constitution from the supreme law of the land,” because

“the power to tax is the power to destroy” (qtd in. McBride, “McCulloch v. Maryland”). The

decision made in McCulloch vs. Maryland established “Federal Supremacy” and further shaped

the various roles of the Federal Government, the Supreme Court and the States.

Another landmark decision that shaped the balance between Federal and State

Governments is Gibbons vs. Ogden (1824). Steamboat operators Aaron Ogden and Thomas

Gibbons initiated this court case. Ogden filed a complaint in the New York State Court against

Gibbons. Ogden, who was issued an exclusive license by the New York State, felt that Gibbons

was compromising him. Ogden was afraid of losing business because Gibbons was using the same

path for his steamboats that Ogden was using. The New York Court ruled in favor of Ogden and

ordered Gibbons to stop operating his steamboats. Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court reviewed

this case in 1824. The Constitution states, regarding the commerce clause, that “Congress shall

have the power to regulate commerce…among the several states.” In Gibbons vs. Ogden, the

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Supreme Court interpreted the word “commerce” to include navigation among states (McBride,

“Gibbons v. Ogden”). The Supreme Court expanded on the McCulloch Federal Supremacy Rule.

They ruled that only the Federal Government has the power to regulate interstate commerce. In

contrast, the State’s powers were limited to regulation of intrastate commerce. This decision

further limited the State’s powers and echoed the earlier decisions that established the Federal

Supremacy Rule.

The next decision in the line of landmark decisions relating to Federal Supremacy is Dredd

Scott vs. Sanford (1857). A Missouri slave-owner took his slave, Dredd Scott, on a trip to Illinois,

a free state. When Scott returned to Missouri, he petitioned a Missouri court for a declaration

saying that Scott is now a free citizen because he had lived in free territory. The Supreme Court

decided that slaves remained slaves even if they were brought into free territory. The Court claimed

that slaves are property; therefore, owners cannot be denied property without Due Process of Law.

The Court used their power delineated in Marbury vs. Madison to conclude this case. They ruled

that the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which banned slavery in free territory, was

unconstitutional because it denied slave owners of their property rights. This decision

demonstrated the tremendous reach of the Court’s power and opened slavery to states.

The history of the Federal Supremacy Rule through landmark Supreme Court decisions is

a good example of how America’s system relies on the limitation of the various governmental

powers to ensure the upholding of the Constitution and the intentions of the founding fathers.

Firstly, McCulloch vs. Maryland shot down a state’s ability to tax the Government, which

ultimately created the Federal Supremacy Rule. This rule was then later applied to the Commerce

Clause in Gibbons vs. Ogden. Finally, Dredd Scott vs. Sandford expanded the Rule of Property

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and Due Process—albeit slavery. The outcomes of these three court cases prove that there is a

balance between the Federal and State Governments.

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Works Cited

Bishop, Rob. “Federal and State Power is Out of Balance.” Desertnews.com, 8 May 2013,

www.deseretnews.com/article/765629007/Federal-and-state-power-is-out-of-

balance.html?pg=all

McBride, Alex. “Marbury V. Madison (1803).” Thirteen.org, Dec. 2006,

www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/democracy/landmark_marbury.html.

McBride, Alex. “Gibbons V. Ogden (1824).” Thirteen.org, Dec. 2006,

www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/antebellum/landmark_gibbons.html

McBride, Alex. “McCulloch v. Maryland (1819).” Thirteen.org, Dec. 2006,

www.thirteen.org/wnet/supremecourt/antebellum/landmark_mcculloch.html