the federal government could make states obey its laws

Question

The federal government could make states obey it slaws 

true or false

Answer 1

Does the sentence refer to the present time or to some past time in (I assume) American history? I ask because could may refer to possibility or ability in the past (its most common meaning) but it could also (<--just like that) refer to a present possibility/ability and in this meaning is a little weaker than can. So I can envision this clause occurring in two example contexts:

 

• past time: Andrew Jackson fervently believed that the federal government could make states its obey its laws.
• present time: The federal government could make states obey its laws, but it often doesn't exercise that power.