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4.1: Introduction

  • Page ID
    297511
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    Photograph of a member of the Nevada National Guard administering a COVID test
    A member of the Nevada National Guard administers a drive-thru COVID-19 test as part of her state’s response to the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.

    In early 2020, as the novel coronavirus known as COVID-19 overwhelmed the world, the United States did not fight back as a single cohesive unit. President Donald Trump did convene a White House Coronavirus Task Force to coordinate a national plan of action, and Americans did become well-acquainted with the personal hygiene recommendations of one of its lead members, Dr. Anthony Fauci. Yet many crucial decisions — on mask mandates, business closures, remote schooling, and other matters — were left up to America’s governors, who have long borne the responsibility for managing public health policy in their respective states.In some ways, America’s piecemeal approach to pandemic response undermined its effectiveness. U.S. states have no legal or practical means of closing their borders, so an outbreak in one state could easily spread to others. Even if a state managed its infection rate well, it might suffer the consequences of its neighbors’ inability to do so. Viruses don’t care where the lines are drawn on a map.

    At the same time, decentralization gave America flexibility. The challenges of densely populated Massachusetts were not the same as those of sparsely populated Montana. Elderly Florida faced different threats than youthful Utah. Governors’ authority allowed them to choose policies for their states’ unique needs. It also helped contain the damage from their mistakes. New York’s decision to admit COVID-19 patients to nursing homes led to the deaths of many older New Yorkers. Had a similar policy been instituted nationwide, many more would have died.

    COVID-19 revealed both the strengths and the weaknesses of American federalism. From the outset, the Founders sought a Constitution that could unite the states enough to respond to national crises while giving them the freedom to manage their own affairs as they saw fit. That balance has shifted substantially over the centuries, as have Americans’ beliefs about what it should be. At the heart of many current issues in American politics – abortion, the death penalty, education, the environment, healthcare, immigration, marijuana, policing – lies this fundamental question about the proper roles of state and nation.


    4.1: Introduction is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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