The powers this is describing are the powers between the federal government and between the states. Before the United States Constitution, there were the Articles of Confederation. These articles gave little to no power to the federal government, to where they could not regulate trade, enforce laws, or tax the states. Many people agreed with the Articles of Confederation because they were scared of the government having too much power. They did not want a repeat of what happened with England, the abuse of power and "taxation without representation." The 10th Amendment in the United States Constitution essentially protects the states from the abuse of government power.
