Bill Introduced to Establish a Joint Commission on the Organization of Congress
By Kevin R. Kosar A bipartisan proposal (H.Con.Res.28) to get Congress to rethink its organization, operations, and capacity has been re-introduced into Congress by Reps. Darin LaHood (R, Il)… Read More
Can Our Political Institutions Handle Our Political Divisions?
New America’s Lee Drutman has a new white paper out. He writes: The United States is a politically divided nation. These divisions have only grown deeper in the past… Read More
Six Ways to Curb the Executive Branch
Alexander Hamilton on the limited executive, Federalist 68. Credit: Library of Congress . By Kevin R. Kosar The Founders intended Congress as the most powerful branch, making the laws… Read More
The Duties of a Senator: Ben Sasse Responds to Nate Silver
Photo source: Sasse.Senate.gov Sen Ben Sasse of Nebraska has a fascinating post on Medium, which he wrote in response to a Nate Silver column. It’s a good read. I spent… Read More
House Holds Hearing on the Power of the Purse
The House Oversight and Government Reform, Subcommittee on Government Operations and Healthcare, Benefits, and Administrative Rules convened a hearing on the power of the purse on December 1, 2016. It… Read More
A Trump-Ryan Constitutional Revival?
Source: Archives.gov Christopher DeMuth had an intriguing essay in the November 25 copy of the Wall Street Journal. He writes: A central purpose of the American scheme of checks… Read More
Video of Meeting On Legislative Branch Reorganization
Enjoy the melodious orations of Kevin Kosar (R Street Institute), Walter Oleszek (Congressional Research Service), and Mark Strand (Congressional Institute) during your lengthy holiday travels, or as you recover from… Read More
Legislation to Create Joint Committee on Congress Introduced in House
Source: VisitTheCapitol.gov H. Con. Res. 169 was introduced on Thursday, September 29, 2016. Its would create a Joint Committee on Congress to explore possible reforms. “Reps. Dan Lipinski (IL-3)… Read More
Abolish the Senate to Strengthen the Separation of Powers?
John Bicknell, the executive editor of Watchdog.org, had an impish piece in the Washington Post on August 30, 2016. To rebalance the separation of powers, it is necessary… Read More
Cincinnatus and the Myth of Amateur Rule
Cincinnatus leaves the plow for the Roman dictatorship. Painting by Juan Antonio Ribera, c. 1806. Blogpost by Thomas F. Ranieri, Federalist Society The tale of Cincinnatus is a popular one… Read More