10th Amendment
The reason that choice is so important is that you have to hold the sovereign responsible for the choices it makes. If the sovereign has no choice, it is not fair to hold it responsible.
Four Categories of 10th Amendment problems: 1. Garcia INOT a 10th amendment problem).. fed controls private (not just state) 2. Where no choice is given 3. Inappropriate use of state employees to executer federal law. 4. Congressional legislation in areas typically and historically reserved to the states
Under the 10th Amendment, the federal government can NOT command, commander, compel, or coerce a state government to do something. But it may regulate the state directly (pay minimum wage), threaten with preemption, or bribe a state.
If Congress passes a generally applicable law, the fact that the regulation effects the states has virtually no practical significance and the 10th amendment doesn't come into play. If the regulation would be valid as applied to a private party its also valid to the state:
The federal government can not compel the states to enact or administer a federal regulatory program.
The federal government must give the state a *choice*. If there is no choice, there is going to be a 10th amendment violation.
The 10th Amendment
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
