Is the idea of a federal government limited to strictly enumerated powers a flawed one?
“Is the idea of a federal government limited to strictly enumerated powers a flawed one?” [NobleFree, post 93]
In the strictest sense - yes, absolutely so.
If only because everything humans think of and do is flawed, and cannot be perfected - by definition.
It’s often been said that “perfect” is the enemy of “good.” Bunches of people acknowledge the truth here, but persist in believing that just because they can imagine it, “perfect” can actually be attained in the real world. Then they voice their vision of perfection, and specify the steps they judge necessary to reach that perfection. They always fail; instead of blaming themselves, they blame followers and everyone else, for lack of faith.
All the attendant fuss obscures the more mundane truths: that “good” can be reached (sometimes), and “better” may be possible. But the steps necessary to reach the latter in hope of approaching the former are entirely different from what the pursuers of “perfect” want, and what steps they will tolerate.