Summarize the Constitution's principles of limited government and federalism.

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answers will vary. The Constitution incorporated the principle of limited government, which means that government can do only what the people allow it to do through the exercise of a duly developed system of laws. This principle can be found in many parts of the Constitution. Implicitly, the principle of limited government rests on the concept of popular sovereignty. In other words, it is the people who form the government and decide on the powers that the government can exercise. The idea that no one, including government officers, is above the law is often called the rule of law. Ultimately, the viability of a democracy rests on the willingness of the people and their leaders to adhere to the rule of law. A nation's written constitution may guarantee numerous rights and liberties for its citizens. Yet, unless the government of that nation enforces those rights and liberties, the law does not rule the nation. Rather, the government decides what the rules will be.The Constitution also incorporated the principle of federalism, or a federal system of government, in which the central (national) government shares sovereign powers with the various state governments. Federalism was the solution to the debate over whether the national government or the states should have ultimate sovereignty. The Constitution gave the national government significant powers-powers that it had not had under the Articles of Confederation. For example, the Constitution expressly states that the president is the nation's chief executive as well as the commander in chief of the armed forces. The Constitution also declares that the Constitution and the laws created by the national government are supreme-that is, they take precedence over conflicting state laws. Other powers given to the national government include the power to coin money, to levy and collect taxes, and to regulate interstate commerce, a power granted by the commerce clause. Finally, the national government was authorized to undertake all laws that are "necessary and proper" for carrying out its expressly delegated powers.Because the states feared too much centralized control, the Constitution also allowed for many states' rights. These rights include the power to regulate commerce within state borders and generally the authority to exercise any powers that are not delegated by the Constitution to the central government.