Republicans are bringing a case before the Supreme Court that has the potential to eviscerate what few remaining restrictions on campaign finance we have left.

Republicans are bringing a case before the Supreme Court that has the potential to eviscerate what few remaining restrictions on campaign finance we have left.

  • Hemingways_Shotgun@lemmy.caEnglish
    12·
    18 hours ago

    Legitimate question as a non-american.

    If the country is just a series of “united” states, each with their own supreme court and their own election laws, What stops a state from simply declaring that federal supreme court decisions have no authority within their borders?

    My understanding is that the whole system of U.S goverment is basically the the federal government governs by the consent of the individual states.

    So why not stand up and say “This federal court is a rubber stamp for a buffoon and they have no legitimacy in the state of whichever”

    I’m pretty sure I realize that it would kick off a constitutional crisis, but if the alternative is more of this shit, what have they got to lose at this point?

    • MajorasMaskForever@lemmy.worldEnglish
      2·
      1 hour ago

      In short: sometimes nothing at all, sometimes self survival

      In practice, when a state becomes a part of the United States it concedes total independence, giving itself to the jurisdiction and control of the federal government. In exchange, a state is given representation in the federal government to influence what laws make up that control and because after a few different rounds of early government structures post colonial independence, the federal government was kneecapped in terms of the types of laws it can pass. If a law passes Congress and survives a legal review by the federal courts, strictly speaking a state has no choice but to agree and cooperate. At best a state could work with other states to repeal laws a single state doesn’t want/like.

      The vast majority of the time states operate in relative good faith and follow federal law. When a state does openly defy the federal government, it depends on the exact law being ignored. Marijuana is illegal on the federal level where mere possession of it lands you in jail, but many states turn a blind eye to citizens using it and states like Colorado make bank off of taxing the sale of it. This kind of stuff happens a lot and the executive branch makes a judgement call on if it’s politically worth punishing a state in defiance.

      This current administration has proven repeatedly to be very vindictive and retaliates against even the perception of defying their rule. The last time a state continued defiance against the federal executive branch this nation threw itself into civil war and lost 2% of its population in the process.