Squabbling amongst states in a federal system may be an
inherent feature of federalism. How much the jealousies and petty interests
manifest in terms of policies may depend on the balance of power between the
federation itself and its member-states. In the case of the E.U., the spat at
the state level over how to allocate the tens of thousands of refugees from the
Middle East and Northern Africa effectively stymied federal action that could
have assuaged the angst. It is no accident that the state governments hold most
of the governmental sovereignty in the E.U. federal system. By contrast, the
case of the U.S. demonstrates that nearly consolidated power at a federal level
can obviate, or stifle, strife between state governments. This alternative is
not optimal either, for interstate differences tend to be ignored, resulting in
increasing pressure on the federal system itself. How to handle municipal
requests for drinking water from Lake Michigan is a case in point.
