Approved Quote by Franklin D. Roosevelt
“Is the United States going to decide, are the people of this country going to decide that their Federal Government shall in the future have no right under any implied power or any court-approved power to enter into a solution of a national economic problem, but that that national economic problem must be decided only by the States? We thought we were solving it, and now it has been thrown right straight in our faces. We have been relegated to the horse-and-buggy definition of interstate commerce.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Press Conference, 1935, United States
The quote warns that shifting economic authority from the federal government to states could limit national solutions and revive outdated commerce definitions.
In simple terms: Moving power to states may hinder national economic problem solving.
Key Takeaway
Consider the balance of federal and state powers.
Themes
federalism
economics
governance
states’ rights
interstate commerce
Mood
concerned
reflective
Type
political
analytical
When to use this quote
- legislative debates
- court rulings
- state economic planning
- national crises
- policy reform
Key Concepts
constitutional law
public policy
economic centralization
Questions to Reflect On
- How should power be divided between national and state governments?
- What risks arise when states handle national economic issues alone?
A Different Perspective
Federal authority may be necessary for coordinated responses to complex economies.
