A U.S. state is any one of 50 subnational entities of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government (four states use the official title of commonwealth rather than state). Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. However, state citizenship is very flexible, and no government approval is required to move between states (with the exception of convicts on parole).

The United States Constitution allocates power between the two levels of government. By ratifying the Constitution, each state transferred certain, but limited, sovereign powers to the federal government. Under the Tenth Amendment, all powers not delegated to the U.S. government nor prohibited to the states are retained by the states, or the people. Historically, the tasks of public education, public health, transportation and other infrastructure have been considered primarily state responsibilities, although they now have significant federal funding and regulation as well.

Over time, the Constitution has been amended, and the interpretation and application of its provisions have changed. The general tendency has been toward centralization and incorporation, with the federal government playing a much larger role than it once did. There is a continuing debate over "states' rights", which concerns the extent and nature of the states' powers and sovereignty in relation to that of the federal government and their power over individuals.

From Wikipedia under the GNU Free Documentation License
Mon Jul 6 10:00:22 2009

U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during a joint
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U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during a joint
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U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks during a joint press conference with Iraqi counterpart Hoshyar Zebari in the headquarters of the Foreign Ministry in Baghdad April 25 2009

the u s secretary of state condoleezza rice file 2007 jpg
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Condoleezza Rice the U S Secretary of State arrived at Egypt s capital Cairo on first stop during her visit to Middle East The U S Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice File 2007

U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Israeli Foreign Minister
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U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Israeli Foreign Minister
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U S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton kisses Israeli Foreign Minister and Kadima leader Tzipi Livni after a joint press conference in Jerusalem March 3 2009 UPI Photo Debbie Hill News Photos UPI com

From Yahoo Image Search: "U.S. state"
Tue Jul 28 18:42:41 2009

 US envoy to meet South Korean officials on North Korea | Home ...
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US envoy to meet South Korean officials on North Korea | Home ...

unknown

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 06:51:37 GM

"We would like to see North Korea return to a process and to begin to take irreversible steps toward denuclearizatio​n of the peninsula," . U.S. State. Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters on Friday in Washington. ...

Martial law now demanded in this U.S. state 'It's time for some ...
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Martial law now demanded in this U.S. state 'It's time for some ...

Gunny G

hu, 09 Jul 2009 21:50:40 GM

Martial law now demanded in this . U.S. state. 'It's time for some real action'. This is a WorldNetDaily printer-friendl​y version of the article which follows. To view this item online, visit ...

Clinton cites US errors on pollution, urges India and others to ...
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Clinton cites US errors on pollution, urges India and others to ...

Robert Burns

Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:32:12 GM

Clinton cites . US. errors on pollutionMUMBAI​, India . US. Secretary of . State. Hillary Rodham Clinton opened a three-day visit to India on Saturday by urging India not to repeat American mistakes in contributing to global pollution, ...

From Google Blog Search: "U.S. state"
Sat Jul 18 18:15:32 2009

Bunning Will Not Seek Third Term - Washington Post
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Bunning Will Not Seek Third Term

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After a decade in the Senate, Bunning, a baseball Hall of Fame member, had seen his political star fade in the Bluegrass State , to the point that ...

US APNewsAlert The Associated Press

Conservative US Senator says won't seek new term AFP

Kentucky's GOP Sen. Jim Bunning officially ends a 2010 re-election bid Los Angeles Times

Reuters  - msnbc.com  - Washington Post

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Kendall working to win home-state US Bank - USA Today
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Kendall working to win home- state US Bank

USA Today

"For any of us ( state golfers) to win it would be monumental, it would be incredible," Kendall said Friday after shooting even par 70 to remain in ...



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Michigan Jobless Rate Tops 15%, California Sees Record Level - Bloomberg
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Michigan Jobless Rate Tops 15%, California Sees Record Level

Bloomberg

Unemployment in Georgia, the ninth-largest US state by population, exceeded 10 percent for the first time ever, increasing to 10.1 percent last month from ...

10% unemployment in 15 US states press tv



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From Google News Search: "U.S. state"
Mon Jul 27 22:20:55 2009

can a passport from another country be used to go from one U.S. state to another?
Q. my friend and i are planning to go to ny for a couple of days and we're taking a plane. but the problem is the only form of ID is she has is her passport from Congo when she came here to the US a few years ago. can she still use it to go on the plane?
Asked by sandylovesjavier28 - Sun May 31 20:35:41 2009 - - 5 Answers - 0 Comments

A. Non-US/Canadian citizens are not required to carry their passports if they have documents issued by the U.S. government such as Permanent Resident Cards or Driver's Licenses. Those who do not should be carrying their passports while visiting the U.S. ..
Answered by GPapenburg - Mon Jun 1 13:10:55 2009

What is the minimum number of state legislatures necessary to ratify the U.S Constitution?
Q. I've read in my text books and on the Web that the minimum number of states necessary to ratify the U.S Constitution is is three-quarters of the country, but doing the math that comes upto 37.5 states, which doesn't make much sense. So what is it?
Asked by three714 - Tue Nov 21 01:41:10 2006 - - 5 Answers - 1 Comments

A. Zero. A constitutional amendment can be ratified with the approval of zero state legislatures. But we'll get back to that. One way to ratify an amendment is with at least 3/4 of the state legislatures. 37 out of 50 is 0.74. That's not at least 0.75. So, 37 would be not enough. 38 or more would be enough. But Article V also allows ratification by state constitutional conventions, which can be convened and authorized separately from the state legislature. So, even if no state legislatures approve, 38 state constitutional conventions would still be enough.
Answered by coragryph - Tue Nov 21 02:05:15 2006

What U.S. State do you believe is the most intellegent? ?
Q. What U.S. State do you believe is the most intellegent?
Asked by falcon0370 - Fri Oct 31 17:08:53 2008 - - 37 Answers - 0 Comments

A. Massachusetts is considered the most educated state. Here's the top 10: MA, CO, CT, MD, VA, NJ, VT, MN, NH, WA Notice something? Obama is ahead in every single one.
Answered by Dan H - Fri Oct 31 17:11:59 2008

From Yahoo Answer Search: "U.S. state"
Mon Jul 27 20:15:41 2009