The powers given to the national government, also known as enumerated or expressed powers, are specifically listed in the U.S. Constitution, mainly in Article I, Section 8. These powers enable the federal government to effectively govern the country and include:
- Taxation and levying tariffs
- Borrowing money
- Regulating foreign and interstate commerce
- Establishing naturalization and bankruptcy rules
- Coining money and regulating its value
- Creating post offices and roads
- Securing intellectual property rights
- Establishing federal courts below the Supreme Court
- Declaring war
- Raising and supporting armies and navies
- Calling forth militias to enforce laws, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions
Additionally, the federal government has implied powers under the Necessary and Proper Clause, allowing it to pass laws needed to carry out its enumerated powers. These implied powers include creating a national bank, setting minimum wages, regulating immigration, and establishing a military draft. The federal government is divided into three branches—legislative, executive, and judicial—each vested with powers by the Constitution. The legislative branch (Congress) holds most of the enumerated powers. The executive branch (President) executes these laws, and the judicial branch interprets them. The Tenth Amendment limits the national government by reserving all powers not delegated to it nor prohibited to states to the states or the people, preserving a balance of power. In summary, the national government’s powers cover taxation, defense, commerce regulation, currency, war declaration, and establishing federal systems necessary for national governance, both explicitly listed and reasonably implied by the Constitution.
