Write an essay that explores the effects of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, on federalism in the United States. Make an argument about how Americans’ new focus on homeland security has affected the relationship between the different levels of government. Focus on the immediate aftermath of September 11, but also explore where that relationship stands today.
As you research this topic and formulate your argument, you might explore the following questions:
- How much federal money is being provided to state and local governments for meeting homeland security costs? Who decides how this money is spent?
- What are the advantages and disadvantages of allowing programs to be designed and implemented at the state level?
- In the area of homeland security, can states function as “laboratories of democracy,” in the same sense that they do for other issues such as welfare reform and health care provision?
- How complicit were state and local governments in the federal government’s surveillance practices after September 11?
- How do the Tenth and Fourteenth amendments, and the commerce clause, factor in to the changes that occurred after September 11?