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> The states are more or less free to ignore (refuse to enforce) federal law. I guess this is what I’m missing, it is really peculiar from my point of view tha

> The states are more or less free to ignore (refuse to enforce) federal law. I guess this is what I’m missing, it is really peculiar from my point of view that a smaller entity can ignore a “higher” law. From what I’m used to the higher law always wins, so during disputes: national > state > county > town. What you are saying is that in the US a smaller entity is free to say “fuck you, come and get me” to a higher entity and get along with it, and the only way for a higher entity to step in is using force? (not literal force but force nonetheless) Maybe it’s a combination of: common law (instead of civil law), most towns are relatively recent, sheer size of the country, isolation of some communities and a strong sense of local autonomy.

sgjohnson 5y ago
> What you are saying is that in the US a smaller entity is free to say “fuck you, come and get me” to a higher entity and get along with it, and the only way for a higher entity to step in is using force? (not literal force but force nonetheless) Yes. And the feds would have to use literal force to get someone for smoking weed in say, Colorado. Your friendly neighbourhood FBI or DEA agent can still arrest you for smoking weed in Colorado, it’s just that the local and state police don’t care and they won’t transfer you to federal custody. Obviously this is not how federal law enforcement works. They don’t do patrols, and they are extremely reliant on state law enforcement to transfer the cases that fall under their jurisdiction to them, except when they are doing the investigation themselves. Harbouring illegal aliens is illegal under federal law, but what are you going to do, if California doesn’t care and straight up refuses to cooperate with the ICE? ICE has the authority to enforce federal law within California, it’s just that they have to put the boots on the ground themselves now, for which no federal law enforcement agency has the resources. This was by design. States are sovereign entities.
- 01acheru 5y ago
  Thanks for this explanation :) The state part is something I quite got already from popular culture, but is there something similar also inside a state? I mean, counties can do the same “fuck you” with the state and towns can do the same with the county?
  - sgjohnson 5y ago
    > The state part is something I quite got already from popular culture, but is there something similar also inside a state? I mean, counties can do the same “fuck you” with the state and towns can do the same with the county? Generally no, because the state is the sovereign. Counties/towns/any other local communities aren't.
    - 01acheru 5y ago
      So how is it that we read articles like this one? Shouldn’t the state intervene to keep counties and towns at bay? For what I read around it is unusual, and mostly when something really bad happens and/or hit the news. If the state is sovereign, why is it not enforcing its own law inside its borders? (thanks again BTW)

sgjohnson 5y ago

> What you are saying is that in the US a smaller entity is free to say “fuck you, come and get me” to a higher entity and get along with it, and the only way for a higher entity to step in is using force? (not literal force but force nonetheless) Yes. And the feds would have to use literal force to get someone for smoking weed in say, Colorado. Your friendly neighbourhood FBI or DEA agent can still arrest you for smoking weed in Colorado, it’s just that the local and state police don’t care and they won’t transfer you to federal custody. Obviously this is not how federal law enforcement works. They don’t do patrols, and they are extremely reliant on state law enforcement to transfer the cases that fall under their jurisdiction to them, except when they are doing the investigation themselves. Harbouring illegal aliens is illegal under federal law, but what are you going to do, if California doesn’t care and straight up refuses to cooperate with the ICE? ICE has the authority to enforce federal law within California, it’s just that they have to put the boots on the ground themselves now, for which no federal law enforcement agency has the resources. This was by design. States are sovereign entities.

01acheru 5y ago
Thanks for this explanation :) The state part is something I quite got already from popular culture, but is there something similar also inside a state? I mean, counties can do the same “fuck you” with the state and towns can do the same with the county?
- sgjohnson 5y ago
  > The state part is something I quite got already from popular culture, but is there something similar also inside a state? I mean, counties can do the same “fuck you” with the state and towns can do the same with the county? Generally no, because the state is the sovereign. Counties/towns/any other local communities aren't.
  - 01acheru 5y ago
    So how is it that we read articles like this one? Shouldn’t the state intervene to keep counties and towns at bay? For what I read around it is unusual, and mostly when something really bad happens and/or hit the news. If the state is sovereign, why is it not enforcing its own law inside its borders? (thanks again BTW)