What power didn't the National Government have under the Artical of Confederation?
Under the Articles of Confederation, the national government in the United States had several limitations on its powers. One notable power that the national government did not possess was the power to levy or collect taxes directly from the citizens.
To understand why the national government lacked this power, one needs to refer to the Articles of Confederation. The Articles were the first constitution of the United States, in effect from 1781 to 1789. They established a highly decentralized system of government, giving most of the power to the individual states. The national government had limited authority and existed mainly to coordinate efforts during the Revolutionary War and to handle foreign affairs.
To determine what powers the national government did not have, you can refer to the Articles of Confederation themselves. They explicitly stated that the national government lacked the power to impose and collect taxes. Instead, the government relied on requisitions made to the states, requesting funds to operate. However, these requisitions were often not fully fulfilled by the states, leading to financial difficulties for the national government.
The inability to tax directly greatly hindered the national government's ability to raise funds for essential functions, such as maintaining a military, paying off war debts, and providing public services. This limitation contributed to the weaknesses of the Articles of Confederation and motivated the creation of the U.S. Constitution, which granted more taxing powers to the federal government under a new system of government.