If Not Federalism, Then What?
When the Framers wrote the Constitution, they could have chosen any type of government. What if
they had chosen something else? Would
it have lessened the power struggle between the states and
the central government? There
are benefits and drawbacks to any type of government, so what were
they considering?
The following activity compares federalism with two other forms of government.
Read about each type
and mark each characteristic A if it's an advantage and D if it's a disadvantage.
Federal: Set of Chairs
A federal form of government, the type of government we have, splits power between independent states and a
central government. The power rests in both places, and each gets its authority
from the people through a governing document, like the U.S. Constitution.
Independent branches inside the central government may also share power.
The states and central government must
work together and balance each other
out, like a set of chairs around the table
There is national unity, but local governments can act as well
Disputes occur between national power and states' rights
People have more opportunities to be heard
Services can be duplicated by different levels of government
Confederal: Many Different Chairs
The confederal form of government is an association of independent states.
The central government gets its authority from the people of the independent
states. Power rests in each individual state, whose representatives meet to
address the needs of the group. The U.S. tried a confederal system before
the Constitution. It didn't work because the states did not give the central
When the Framers wrote the Constitution, they could have chosen any type of government. What if
they had chosen something else? Would
it have lessened the power struggle between the states and
the central government? There
are benefits and drawbacks to any type of government, so what were
they considering?
The following activity compares federalism with two other forms of government.
Read about each type
and mark each characteristic A if it's an advantage and D if it's a disadvantage.
Federal: Set of Chairs
A federal form of government, the type of government we have, splits power between independent states and a
central government. The power rests in both places, and each gets its authority
from the people through a governing document, like the U.S. Constitution.
Independent branches inside the central government may also share power.
The states and central government must
work together and balance each other
out, like a set of chairs around the table
There is national unity, but local governments can act as well
Disputes occur between national power and states' rights
People have more opportunities to be heard
Services can be duplicated by different levels of government
Confederal: Many Different Chairs
The confederal form of government is an association of independent states.
The central government gets its authority from the people of the independent
states. Power rests in each individual state, whose representatives meet to
address the needs of the group. The U.S. tried a confederal system before
the Constitution. It didn't work because the states did not give the central
