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What is meant by, "In this first constitution of the United States," each state retained "every Power not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States"?

User Xinit
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Final answer:

The concept of 'every Power not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States' refers to the reserved powers of the states as affirmed by the Tenth Amendment, where powers not granted to the federal government nor prohibited to the states are reserved to the states or the people.

Step-by-step explanation:

When the Constitution of the United States refers to the fact that each state retains "every Power not by this confederation expressly delegated to the United States," it specifies a constitutional doctrine known as reserved powers. These are powers not explicitly assigned to the federal government by the Constitution, nor prohibited to the states, thereby remaining with the states or the people. This principle is enshrined in the Tenth Amendment, which was part of the Bill of Rights added to the Constitution to appease the Anti-Federalists who strongly advocated for states' rights and a limited federal government. The Articles of Confederation which predated the Constitution, gave states substantial independence, and the Constitution aimed to balance state power with a stronger federal government to ensure a more effective union.

Reserved powers include creating local governments, education systems, and other infrastructure according to the states' discretion. These powers are crucial as they acknowledge the sovereignty of states within the United States, allowing them to govern in ways not otherwise declared by the federal government. The federal system achieves a complex system of shared power, where both the national and state governments have distinctive roles, but both are subject to the Constitution as the "supreme law of the land."

User Marcel Hoekstra
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