RESOURCES & RESEARCH (Legal FAQ's)
OUR GOVERNMENT'S UNIQUE (& IGNORED) BALANCE OF POWER
Ask the average person, even the average conservative who is generally on top of the idea of limited government, what "balance of power" means in our Constitution and you will hear "Oh, it's the President and Congress" or "President, Congress and Supreme Court." Not really. Yes, the federal government was further divided in that manner, with none of the three branches given authority over either of the other two. But the real balance was that States were supposed to keep the Federal Government within its bounds. They thought that the natural ego of state politicians would serve as a sufficient back-stop to the overwhelming power-grab of Federal politicians, of all parties. For over 100 years, it worked. And during that period the Country mushroomed in growth, freedom, and prosperity, for everyone.
The primary source of authority for this principle is the Constitution itself. It severely and expressly limits all branches of the Federal Government to operate only with the 17 grounds enumerated in Article I. States had all other authority, naturally inherent in sovereign countries, but for any authority taken away by the Constitution. In other words, if there is any doubt, the States have the power to do it, not the Feds.
The may be one of the largest principles in our Constitution and its wanton neglect is the cause of most of the crises we face today, such as the trillions in deficit, our plummeting currency, incomprehensible tax code, and even the emotional debates on such things as illegal aliens, a debate which the Founders would have thought completely out of place on a national scale.
Notice the following commentary by the authors of the Constitution:
“It may safely be received as an
axiom in our political system, that the State governments
will, in all possible contingencies, afford complete
security against invasions of the public liberty by the
national authority.” Alexander Hamilton Federalist Papers#28
“Hence, 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.” James Madison Federalist Papers# 51
“We may safely rely on the disposition of the state legislatures to erect barriers against the encroachments of the national authority.” Alexander Hamilton Federalist Papers#85