What type of system did the Framers create when reconciling the need for strong central government while respecting State government?

Answer 1

The system is often referred to as Federalism. This system is based on a theory of "checks and balances" which enables great devolution of power and local decision-making to the various regional state governments while providing mechanisms for the federal government to address matters that might supercede geographic boundaries and local jurisdiction (e.g., the U.S. postal system, interstate commerce, civil rights and certain labor laws).

The system of federal checks and balances operates through the diffusion of power associated with the executive, legislative and judiciary branches of the federal government. Each state is charged with electing representatives to the legislative branch who will echo their interests at the federal level. These legislators each have a vote in their respective legislative chambers (the Senate and the House of Represenatives) and often exert influence in the federal legislative process in order to receive funding for their state or to advocate for laws that promote their local interests, social or commercial. In many instances regional or partisan alliances are formed among legislators in order to advance their socioeconomic or political programs with much intersection between the social, economic and political spheres.

The federal citizenry elects an official (the President) every four years in order to steer the national agenda and enforce its laws. This official may only draft legislation by signing an "executive order" directing a course of action. These directives can ultimately be challenged by the legislative branch. The President may override laws passed by the legislative branch (veto), but the legislative branch may also "veto the veto" if two-thirds of both the House and Senate agree.

The executive and legislative branches enforce and create laws, respectively, and often attempt to reconcile the overarching, and many times competing, interests of the union and the states. The states are able to legislate their own affairs but federal law ultimately has legal supremacy. States can challenge federal decisions that they deem as onerous such as unfunded mandates (laws passed by the federal government that are perceived as not providing the adequate funding to properly execute at the local level). Some federal decisions, such as "No Child Left Behind," have been characterized by local governments as untenable due to a lack of funding sources.

As empowered by Article III of the Constitution, the federal judicial branch serves an important function because it has the authority to reverse or affirm local decisions in legal controversy. Ffederal district courts, utilizing Article III federal judges and citizen juries, often decide on state challenges to federal law. Legal issues decided by the federal judiciary can still be appealed further. Only those cases in which a formal case or brief has been presented or petitioned to the "supreme," federal court are considered for further legal resolution. The fedeal circuit courts, and ultimately the Supreme Court, are often charged with the task of interpreting the Framers' Constitution, as well as the Framers' intentions, in an attempt to balance federal legal supremacy versus the rights of the states. All three branches perform in a dynamic web of decision-making meant to ensure that no one particular interest weilds disproportionate power. The spirit of the system is to protect the citizens from arbitrary laws and to provide legal direction where a legislative gap is evident. The citizenry, whether their concerns are marginalized by or representative of the majority within their state, ultimately find methods in which to redress their greivances. This "dual citizenship" (both local and federal membership) is at the heart of this system and allows for an "escape latch" from either state or federal arbitrariness when necessary.