The United States has a federal form of government, meaning that the power to make policy is shared between the national government in Washington and the 50 state governments located across the country. Federalism has certain advantages, most notably the ability for state and local governments to act based on better information on local needs. At the same time, federalism creates the potential for conflict between different levels of government in cases where they disagree on services, regulations, or other policy matters. When do such conflicts arise? Which level of government gets to have their say?

The policy-making process in the United States is like building a house. An owner (the American public) hires an architect (Congress and the President) to build a house. The architect decides what kind of house to build, then hires a contractor (the bureaucracy) to build the house. Because the contractor in most cases has built many houses, the intent is they know the ins and outs of the building process better than the architect or the owner. This expertise gives the contractor (the bureaucracy) considerable authority over how the house gets built. The same is true for the American bureaucracy in the policy-making process.

Eminent domain is the government’s right to seize private property for public purposes as long as the original property owners are compensated. Despite the Constitution’s guarantees of life, liberty, and property, eminent domain allows the government to take things even if the owners are unwilling to accept compensation. What is eminent domain? How has it been used, and what is its role in today’s society?