Federalism

Throughout American history the power of the federal government in comparison with the states has been continually debated. This is because there is a principal known as the separation of powers. In the Constitution, this is reserving certain areas of authority for the federal and state governments. The problem is that many of these powers can often come into conflict with one another on a regular basis. As the Constitution, will provide some basic guidelines, but it will not address specific areas. To account for this, the courts are relying on individual interpretations and case precedent. This creates conflicting areas of authority, based upon the general powers that are given to the states and federal government. (Bonnie)

In the case of the federal government, this kind of conflict occurred in 1984 with the passage of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act. This law encouraged the states to raise the...
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