Why Was The Federal Government Power

Words: 570
Pages: 3

Why was the federal government given more power by The Constitution than the state governments? The Articles of Confederation before it had many problems, however it did hold some advantages over The Constitution. The Constitution took a federalist approach to the American government to provide a strong central power. The Constitution made it clear that federal power overrules state power, however many did not like this, as it could be seen as an attack on the people’s rights. I believe that The Constitution was the best compromise between the people’s rights and the government’s ability to govern the country, it improved the government and made it clear where their power stands. Before The Constitution, the Articles of Confederation were written as the law of the land. The Articles had many problems though, there was no executive to enforce the law in the executive branch. There was no national court system for trials of suspected criminals. The only way to amend an article in the Articles of Confederation is by a unanimous decision. …show more content…
The federalists viewed this as a good change, the government would be able to collect taxes and fund things such as a military. The anti-federalists saw this as a bad change though, they feared that the government would abuse it’s power and control the people and strip them of their rights. The Framers of The Constitution decided to implement a strong central government because under the Articles of Confederation the states didn’t cooperate, and many had different laws. With a supreme government, they could implement nationwide laws the help the states cooperate and keep America consistent. Those who could afford to pay taxes to the stronger federal government were able to support themselves under the new Constitution, however those unable to pay were hurt by the stronger