Читать книгу Political Science For Dummies - Marcus A. Stadelmann - Страница 94

In a federalist state, subnational levels of governments not only exist but have independent powers. These powers are reserved by a constitution for these subnational levels of governments and can’t be taken away by the central government. Examples are states in the U.S. and the Laender (federal states) in Germany. Both of these subnational levels of governments have independent powers guaranteed by federal constitutions. Additionally, these lower levels of governments are represented at the national level in upper houses of governments such as the U.S. Senate or the German Bundesrat.

The central government usually maintains full power over the military and monetary and foreign policy, but the lower levels of governments do exercise important powers. In the U.S., for example, the states have power over school curricula and can decide on matters such as whether to have the death penalty, what the speed limit should be, and most recently whether to legalize recreational drugs. In Germany, the Laender can also set school curricula and have important powers of taxation.

The next question is why have a federal political structure? Are there advantages and disadvantages over a unitary system?