Federalism: The Sneaky Check and Balance

To help us make sense of one of the most overlooked and forgotten checks in our system of checks and balances, we use our first phone-a-friend lifeline in Crash Course history.

In the time it takes for you to get dressed (or 4 times that in my case),

Matt Glassman

of Georgetown University, breaks down the concept of FEDERALISM: the division of power between the federal government and the U.S. state governments. The whole system is designed so that no one level of government can swallow the other. And it impacts a ton of stuff that we feel, see, experience in our everyday lives.

Here’s the main takeaways. In our federalist system:

• The federal government can only do what the Constitution explicitly says it can do, while,

• State governments can do anything except what is explicitly prohibited from doing by the Constitution.

• Absent a federal law, the states decide.

This is why we states vary in how they run elections, whether or not they required masks in restaurants during Covid, or if abortions are legal.