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The Question: "what are the ways federalism can reconcile a divided nation" via 
My Response: Federalism is a great compromise if there are issues between the federal government and smaller, local governments. So, if a nation is divided, it's the perfect mediation in order to unite without force or the formation of a dictatorship. It allows for some power to remain with the individual governments while still being under a general umbrella which unites them. Basically, creating a foundation for the local governments to build on, but excludes interference and unwanted control. It can cause some issues, especially if there's dissent over what falls under the central governments jurisdiction. It can also cause issues if there are massive disagreement between the local governments. If we're looking at the United States, then issues regarding things like weed, marriage equality, or even abortion can cause strife and mixed signals for all the people who live in the nation. This can lead to a confusion of laws, with people crossing state borders and getting in trouble for things that were perfectly legal in their state or vice versa, people crossing state borders in order to do something that is illegal in their specific state. Normally, this is where the central government steps in and issues a formal regulation, like with marriage equality, the central government made gay marriage legal in any state, regardless of what individual states' stances were on it. However, then the question becomes when should the central government step in and when should it leave it up to the states? Overall, federalism is supposed to create compromise and a middle ground that allows both state and central government to have some power, but the amount of power each of those systems have is the topic of much debate and controversy.
