"Federal Ambition, State Autonomy, and the Constitution: A Conversation About the State of American Federalism" is sponsored by Phi Beta Kappa Society at the University of Illinois, and will take place in the Max L. Rowe Auditorium, Law Building on March 30, 2017 from 12:15 - 1:15 p.m. Speakers are Vikram D. Amar, Dean and Iwan Foundation Professor of Law; and Jason Mazzone, Professor of Law and Lynn H. Murray Faculty Scholar in Law. This program is free and open to the public.
Federalism, the division of power between the national government and the states, is a defining feature of the American constitutional system. The federalism balance impacts virtually every aspect of our lives. At times, federalism facilitates cooperation, with the national government and the states acting together to pursue common goals. At other times, federalism generates conflict, with national and state or local actors pursuing different goals and asserting authority to implement their own policy preferences. In some instances, states and cities obstruct or otherwise resist federal programs. Some cities, for example, have announced themselves to be "sanctuaries" from the Trump administration's immigration enforcement efforts. Some states have decriminalized uses and sales of marijuana even though such activities are prohibited under federal law.
How should we understand federalism today? What are the limits on federal power? How does the Supreme Court understand federalism and what will be the likely impact on the Court's decisions with the arrival of a new justice to fill the vacancy left by Justice Scalia? How will federalism facilitate or constrain the programs of the Trump administration? When must states cooperate with the federal government? What are the opportunities at the state and local level for resisting federal law? What lessons can be derived from history: is there a difference between resisting deportations of neighbors and (as in the past) resisting integration of the neighborhood? Are sanctuaries from national policies ever compatible with our constitutional system?
The Phi Beta Kappa Society at the University of Illinois presents Federal Ambition, State Autonomy, and the Constitution: A Conversation About the State of American Federalism. Leading this conversation will be two of the nation’s most accomplished constitutional scholars: Vikram David Amar, Dean and Iwan Foundation Professor of Law, and Jason Mazzone, Professor of Law and Lynn H. Murray Faculty Scholar in Law. A question-and-answer session will follow their remarks. Additional support provided by: College of Law Program in Constitutional Theory, History, and Law
Phi Beta Kappa is the oldest and most respected undergraduate honors organization in the United States. The Society has pursued its mission of fostering and recognizing excellence in the liberal arts and sciences since 1776. More information is available at the National Phi Beta Kappa. The chapter at the University of Illinois, Gamma of Illinois, was chartered in 1907. More information at pbk.illinois.edu.
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