American Government

Compare and contrast Derthick’s view on the “Ways of Achieving Federal Objectives" with the Dale Krane’s description of “The Middle Tier in American Federalism: State Government Policy Activism During the Bush Presidency." Tim Conlan and Paul Posner levy similar criticism of the Bush approach to intergovemmental relations in their article “Inflection Point? Federalism and the Obama Administration.” In light of the extensive litigation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and President Obama’s executive order on immigration, as well as the controversy surrounding the Common Core Curriculum and the “Race to the Top”, do you agree with Conlan and Posner or do you see a continuing trend towards centralization? How have things changed with the Trump Administration? How would Phillip Monypenny view the current relationship between the states and the federal government?