Federalism: A Very Short Introduction

Very Short Introductions #629

by Mark J. Rozell, Clyde Wilcox

Early Americans were suspicious of centralized authority and executive power. Casting away the yoke of England and its king, the founding fathers shared in this distrust as they set out to pen the Constitution. Weighing a need for consolidated leadership with a demand for states' rights, they established a large federal republic with limited dominion over the states, leaving most of the governing responsibility with the former colonies. With this dual system of federalism, the national government held the powers of war, taxation, and commerce, and the ability to pass the laws necessary to uphold these functions. Although the federal role has grown substantially since then, states and local governments continue to perform most of the duties in civil and criminal law, business and professional licensing, the management of infrastructure and public roads, schools, libraries, sanitation, land use and development, and etc. Despite the critical roles of state and local governments, there is little awareness-or understanding-of the nature and operations of the federal system.This Very Short Introduction provides a concise overview of federalism, from its origins and evolution to the key events and constitutional decisions that have defined its framework. Although the primary focus is on the United States, other federal systems, including Brazil, Canada, India, Germany, Russia, South Africa, Switzerland, and the EU, are addressed.

Genres: Politics, History, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Philosophy, United States

159 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 24, 2019

Reviews

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Two professors of government, Clyde Wilcox and Mark J. Rozell published Federalism: A Very Short Introduction in 2019. Federalism is defined by Wilcox and Rozell as “the political system in which subnational units have some autonomy and authority and where there is power sharing between a national government and its subnational units” (Wilcox & Rozell xxi). The first federalist government was created by the United States Constitution of 1787 (Wilcox & Rozell 1). Wilcox and Rozell write that “the final draft created a more powerful national government with powers to declare war, negotiate treaties, raise a permanent navy, raise revenue and more generally (and vaguely) provide for the public welfare. States retained considerable sovereign, including their own criminal law, civil law, and business regulations and to collect their taxes” (Wilcox & Rozell 1). The government of the United States has changed a lot since 1787 but the United States is still a federal system. I read the book on my Kindle. The book also looks at other governments that follow the federal system especially Switzerland after 1848, Canada, Brazil, Australia, India, and Nigeria. The book has a section of references, an index, and illustrations. The book covers the advantages and disadvantages of federalism. I thought the book was a well-done introduction to the concept of federalism.

[Jasper O. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite an in-depth introduction on a topic I knew very little about. I knew what federalism was, in essence, but I did not know the ideological and sometimes violent early history of federalism and anti-federalism. It is really a political and philosophical topic to think about for oneself, and I believe this booklet encourages the reader to do so. The chapter on states' rights and the modern federal and state legal systems was also very good and explained a lot of things about the USA that I have often wondered about.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clear overview of Federalism. Focused on the US System it discusses the path federalism took in the country as well as advantages and disadvantages. The book briefly looks at other federalist systems and encourages us to think about what some systems do that are better what may be worse and why. Written in a clear and neutral academic tone, this is a good start with understanding Federalist governments.

[Jenn Palomino · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another CLI book, I really enjoyed this one. It’s exactly what it says it is, an introduction to federalism. It specifically talks about federalism in the US but then ends by using examples of how other countries do federalism in their governments. Cool nerdy government stuff.

[Ksrugel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great civics refresher on foundational concepts of US national and state government.

[Ab · Rating 3 out of 5]

USA centric.

[Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good introduction to federalism, including surveys of federalism beyond America.

[Robin]

A helpful starting point for considering distribution of power between centralized government and states. Includes overviews of federalist systems outside of the U.S. as well.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short, which is good. I bought it mainly to inform me more about the Lib Dem suggestion that UK should federalise. Now, obviously I didn't expect the book to focus on that (that'd be crazy!) but I was disappointed to see that it focussed so heavily on American federalism (although there are also mentions of other federal systems). I don't really feel like I read a cohesive discussion of the different pros and cons of federalism, so it didn't really do it for me.