Steve, Mack, and Anne dig into the power dynamics of these United States.

REFERENCES

What about Washington, D.C.?

Duignan, Brian. “What State Is Washington, D.C. In?” June 13, 2025. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/story/what-state-is-washington-dc-in

Federalism is…

Legal Information Institute. “Federalism.” https://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/federalism

We should start with the Tenth Amendment:

Constitution Annotated. “Tenth Amendment.” https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-10/

When James Madison and the first Congress under the Constitution were drafting a Bill of Rights:

NCC Staff. “On This Day: James Madison Introduces the Bill of Rights.” June 8, 2023. National Constitution Center. https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/on-this-day-james-madison-introduces-the-bill-of-rights

There were 12 proposed amendments:

National Archives. “Bill of Rights.” Reviewed August 13, 2020. https://www.archives.gov/legislative/features/bor

Mel Brooks and History of the World:

https://youtu.be/I48hr8HhDv0?si=i9tGvexOWMqa99Km

So, in Article 1, Section 8, are the powers of Congress:

Constitution Annotated. “Article I Legislative Branch: Section 8 Enumerated Powers.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/article-1/section-8/

Article 1, Section 9, are powers denied to Congress:

Constitution Annotated. “Article I Legislative Branch: Section 9 Powers Denied Congress.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/article-1/section-9/

Article 1, Section 10, are powers denied to the states:

Constitution Annotated. “Article I Legislative Branch: Section 10 Powers Denied States.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/article-1/section-10/

During the revolution, we were basically a confederation:

National Archives. “Articles of Confederation (1777).” https://www.archives.gov/milestone-documents/articles-of-confederation

The states always had power, and originally it was royal charters:

Yale Law School. “Colonial Charters, Grants, and Related Documents.” https://avalon.law.yale.edu/subject_menus/statech.asp

They were all British, the original 13:

Ray, Michael. “In What Order Were the 13 American Colonies Established?” July 2, 2025. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/In-What-Order-Were-the-13-American-Colonies-Established

Maryland—go Catholics:

History.com Editors. “The Settlement of Maryland.” Updated May 28, 2025. History.com. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/march-25/the-settlement-of-maryland

The acts of Parliament that got everybody head up:

American Battlefield Trust. “The Acts That Fueled Rebellion.” January 1, 2024. https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/acts-fueled-rebellion

Parliament declares Massachusetts to be in rebellion:

The Falmouth Historical Society. “250 Years Ago: Parliament Declares Massachusetts to be in a State of Rebellion!” https://www.thefhs.org/250-Rebellion

Part of that was going through the shared experience of the French and Indian War:

Office of the Historian. “French and Indian War/Seven Years’ War, 1754–63.” https://history.state.gov/milestones/1750-1775/french-indian-war

The Empire is the part you’re living in:

Britannica Editors. “British Empire.” December 1, 2025. https://www.britannica.com/place/British-Empire

Like Jonathan Edwards:

Schafer, Thomas A. “Jonathan Edwards.” October 1, 2025. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jonathan-Edwards

They were real assholes:

Mayer, Alicia. “Dominating the Unsaved: The Different Other and Cultural Imperialism in the New England Puritan Way.” April 9, 2024. Center for the Study of World Religions. https://cswr.hds.harvard.edu/news/2024/04/10/dominating-unsaved-different-other-and-cultural-imperialism-new-england-puritan-way

There were Tories:

Britannica Editors. “Loyalist.” January 31, 2025. Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/loyalist

Not even the Epstein files:

Quinnipiac University. “63% Of Voters Disapprove of the Trump Administration's Handling of the Jeffrey Epstein Files, Quinnipiac University National Poll Finds; Nearly Half of Voters Would Consider Joining A Third Party, Just Not One Created by Elon Musk.” July 16, 2025. https://poll.qu.edu/poll-release?releaseid=3928

Or the fact that the Earth is round:

Foster, Craig A. and Branch, Glenn. “Do People Really Think Earth Might Be Flat?” August 21, 2018. Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/observations/do-people-really-think-earth-might-be-flat/

Or Nazis:

Roston, Aram and Urquhart, Jim. “American Nazis: The Aryan Freedom Network is Riding High in Trump Era.” Updated August 10, 2025. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/investigations/american-nazis-aryan-freedom-network-is-riding-high-trump-era-2025-08-08/

Or that contrails are just contrails:

Asmelash, Leah. “The Truth Behind Those White Streaks Trailing Behind Jets in the Sky.” March 12, 2024. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/us/chemtrails-conspiracy-theory-explained-cec

That chocolate milk comes from brown cows:

Coleman, Nancy. “Chocolate Milk Definitely Doesn’t Come From Brown Cows—But Some Adults Think Otherwise.” June 16, 2017. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/2017/06/16/us/chocolate-milk-help-trnd

They had a lot of complaints with Parliament:

Library of Congress. “Documents from the Continental Congress and the Constitutional Convention.” https://www.loc.gov/collections/continental-congress-and-constitutional-convention-from-1774-to-1789/articles-and-essays/timeline/1764-to-1765/

No, I’m sending Hessians after you:

Head, David. “Hessians.” Mount Vernon. https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/hessians

Which, by the way, is not a single document:

The Constitution Society. “The UK Constitution.” https://consoc.org.uk/the-constitution-explained/the-uk-constitution/

At Annapolis:

Lluberes, Cornelia. “Annapolis Convention.” Updated May 30, 2025. Mount Vernon. https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/annapolis-convention

Did you want to skip them:

United States House of Representatives. “Continental and Confederation Congresses.” https://history.house.gov/People/Continental-Congress/Continental-Confederation-Congresses/

It was explicitly to amend the Articles of Confederation, and they went a little above and beyond that:

National Archives. “The Constitution: How Did it Happen?” https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/constitution/how-did-it-happen

In the debates over ratification:

Glover, Lorri. “Nothing Inevitable: The Struggle for Ratification.” Organization of American Historians. https://www.oah.org/tah/the-american-republic/nothing-inevitable-the-struggle-for-ratification/

Including the Federalist Papers:

Library of Congress. “Full Text of The Federalist Papers.”

Everything You Wanted to Know About Federalism But Were Afraid to Ask