<span>If the state laws had more power than federal laws the Constitution would have little to no power. Hope this helps :)</span>
Cavour and Bismarck used poitics, he knew he couldn't take down Austria on his own so he got help from the Napolion the third. Even though the French backed out he still got Northern Italy back.
Currently, the strongest branch of America's government is the Executive branch.
While the branches were once co-equal, the Presidency has taken on a life of its own with the ability to wage war without Congressional approval and to dictate the terms to Congress without much push back.