Federalizam u doba krize: modernizacija američkog federalizma od Građanskog rata do Novog dogovora
Federalism in Times of Crisis: Modernization of the American Federalism from the Civil War until the New Deal

Summary/Abstract: The era from the end of the Civil War in 1865 until the Great Depression in 1930s is considered to be a period of modernization of the American federalism. There are three main characteristics of this period. The first is the prevalence of the notion of a living Constitution, an instrument which continuously develops, is interpreted differently over time and adjusts to the changed political and socio-economic conditions. The second is the consolidation and further strengthening of the powers of the federal government in relation to the level of states. This was enabled by the constitutional structure of the federal system and intergovernmental competition over powers, as well as changed socio-economic conditions, which caused the formation of a new type of coalitions – from traditional business interest groups that covered both sides of the political spectrum toward the creation and strengthening of the class coalitions. Finally, the paper also demonstrates that the interference of the federal government in the state domain particularly accelerates in times of greater economic shocks and crises.

• Details
• Contents