It is (my) intention to … demand recognition of the distinction
between the powers granted to the Federal Government
and those reserved to the States or to the people.
All of us need to be reminded that the Federal Government
did not create the States; the States created the Federal Government.
– President Ronald Reagan, First Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1981

When I heard President Ronald Reagan utter the words above, my heart leapt with joy. I couldn't imagine a modern-day president recognizing the sovereignty of the states and understanding their role in the creation of the American republic. If I had been the scrivener of that address, I'd have added "and the powers that the states gave away to the feds they can take back!"

Oh, how the presidential attitude has changed.

Last week, President Donald Trump purported to order the states to reform their policies on bail so as to incorporate a variant of pre-conviction incarceration. He also ordered them to prosecute people for burning their own flags. His own observations have apparently caused him to conclude that bad people — including flag burners — should be picked up off the streets, incarcerated and kept there until trial. In another breath, he referred to the states as "agents" of the federal government.

Trump has been on a campaign to use federal force to enhance public safety. He may be right that many Americans would like to see him do this, but where is his constitutional authority to do so? In a word: NOWHERE.

Here is the back story.

The drafters of the Constitution wove into its fabric the concept of subsidiarity. This means that problems for government to solve should be addressed by the government closest to the problem and the people affected by it. As well, government should employ the least assets needed, not the most available.