Congress is the least liked and perhaps least understood part of government. But it’s vital to our constitutional government. Congress is the only branch equipped to work through our diverse nation’s disagreements and decide on the law. To better understand the First Branch, join host Kevin Kosar and guests as they explain its infrastructure, culture, procedures, history, and more.
The topic of this episode is, “How can the average American influence a member of Congress?” A lot of Americans feel no connection to the US Congress. If you asked them, they probably could not name their members in the House of Representatives and their Senators. And few voters have had a conversation with their legislators, or have tried to persuade them by sending a letter or email to their legislators. I am not picking on the average voter. I can tell you that before I started writing a doctoral dissertation on Congress in my late 20s, I had never been in contact with a representative or Senator. It simply had not occurred to me, nor did I believe that if I asked these people in suits who were hundreds of miles away from me, they would help me. What was lost on me and is lost on so many other Americans is this basic truth: if you don’t tell Congress what you want, then how can you expect it to do what you want? Voting for candidates who support policies you prefer is important, but it's not enough. You need to communicate to your legislators to remind them of what you want and to let them know that your vote in the next election is not to be taken for granted. So how can the average American get his voice heard on Capitol Hill? Here to help me answer this question is Brad Fitch, the author of the book, The Citizen’s Handbook for Influencing Elected Officials (Sunwater, 2025). Brad knows an awful lot about Capitol Hill—he has been there for 40 years and previously served as the CEO of the Congressional Management Foundation and a congressional staffer. Read the full transcript of the episode here .
The topic of this episode is, “Who were the House Appropriations Committee Surveys and Investigations Staff and what did they do?” More than a decade ago, a friend and longtime veteran of Capitol Hill informed me that he had received a contract to work for the House Appropriations Committee Surveys and Investigations staff. I had no idea who these folks were, despite all the years I had spent working for Congress. When I asked him for details, he explained to me that he really couldn't share much about who they were and what he was doing. I thought that was odd, but I didn't cry and I let it go. I remember thinking it was something that I should look into, but I had more pressing research and life responsibilities, and I never conducted that research. As fate would have it, a couple of years ago, I ran into Professor Matthew Dull at an academic conference. He is a tenured professor at the Center for Public Administration & Policy at Virginia Tech University. To my wonder and delight, he informed me that he had written a lengthy paper on the history of the House Appropriations Committee Surveys and Investigation staff. We talked about what he learned about this mysterious corps of congressional staff, and I was riveted. I promised myself that I would not only read that paper but that I'd bring him on the Understanding Congress podcast, and finally, I'm making good on that. So Professor Matthew Dull is with me today to tell what he has learned. Read the full transcript here . Read the archival documents here .
The topic of this episode is, “Does the Congressional Baseball Game increase collaboration in Congress?” Each June, members of our national legislature play ball. Democrats and Republicans from the House of Representatives each field a team, practice, and then play a game. The 2026 Congressional Baseball Game is on Wednesday, June 10, at 7:05 pm EDT at Nationals Park in Washington, DC. This tradition goes back to 1909, and the proceeds are contributed to charities. More than a few Americans have scoffed at this event and groused that elected officials should be inside the Capitol doing their jobs. And sadly, the Congressional Baseball Game has been targeted by political extremists. Environmental activists ran onto the field during the 2024 game in hopes of drawing attention to their cause. They got booed , rightly. And one far left kook shot Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) and four other individuals at a practice for the game. My guest is SoRelle Wyckoff Gaynor . She is an assistant professor at the University of Virginia’s Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. She is also a faculty affiliate at the Center for Effective Lawmaking , which produces studies that entail who in Congress gets things done—and who doesn't. SoRelle recently coauthored an article on the Congressional Baseball Game titled “Playing Ball: Collaboration in the U.S. Congress.” And I would be remiss if I did not mention that Professor Gaynor is the coauthor of Congress Explained: Representation and Lawmaking in the First Branch (CQ Press) and the author of the forthcoming book, Echo Chambers: How Partisan Communication Took Over Congress (University of Chicago Press). Read the full transcript here .
The topic of this episode is, “What’s the status of congressional modernization?" My guest is Representative Stephanie Bice , who is the chairperson of the Subcommittee on Modernization and Innovation in the US House of Representatives. She also sits on the Committee on House Administration , which has jurisdiction over a lot of aspects of the legislative branch’s operations. Rep. Bice is a Republican who has represented Oklahoma's 5th Congressional District since January 2021. She previously served in the Oklahoma state legislature from 2014 to 2020. Prior to that, she worked in business for her family’s technology company and ran her own marketing firm. This is Rep. Bice’s second time on this podcast. Not long ago, she spoke to us about how the House of Representatives could better prepare new members . Read the full transcript here .
The topic of this episode is, “Does Congress need a Congressional Capacity and Technology Office?” Congress has a reputation for being behind the times when it comes to technology. Legislators often do not understand new technological developments, and the Hill itself has lagged in adopting technology. I recall being employed at a legislative branch support agency, and we were handed Blackberries while the rest of the country was using iPhones and Androids. So what can be done to help Congress catch up? A solution has been suggested by the POPVOX Foundation , a nonprofit organization that tries to “help democratic institutions keep pace with a rapidly changing world.” It has proposed that Congress create a Congressional Capacity and Technology Office. Here to talk with me about this idea is Aubrey Wilson , POPVOX's Director of Governmental Innovation and Global Initiatives. Aubrey has been working on congressional reform for a long time. She previously served as Deputy Staff Director for the Committee on House Administration. In this role, she coordinated efforts to make the House work more effectively. Prior to that, Aubrey and I worked together on governance reform at the R Street Institute. Aubrey also edits the Future-Proofing Congress newsletter , which informs Hill staff of “operational improvements and new resources on and off the Hill” that make their jobs easier. So who better to have discuss this topic? Read the full transcript here .
The topic of this episode is, “Why should we care about Congress's power of the purse?” Well, we are just getting through the FY2026 budget process, which Congress was supposed to finish nearly half a year ago. And the next budget process has begun. During the second administration of Donald Trump, we have seen an escalation of the longstanding battle between the executive branch and the legislative branch over federal revenue-raising and federal spending. Mr. Trump famously unleashed the Department of Government Efficiency, and he has refused to spend money appropriated by Congress. In other cases, he has repurposed money appropriated for one purpose to another purpose. And this is to say nothing of some of the peculiar revenue-raising maneuvers he has made, such as seizing oil from Venezuela, selling it, and then tucking the money in an overseas bank account. Should we be bothered by any of these doings? Should we really care whether Congress or the president exerts more or less power over the federal purse? To discuss these questions, I have with me Shalanda Young , who has an extraordinary amount of expertise and experience in federal budgeting matters. Ms. Young presently is a Distinguished Scholar in Residence and Adjunct Professor of Law at New York University’s law school. Previously, Ms. Young was the Director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget from 2021 to 2025. In that position, she also led the development of all four of President Joseph Biden’s budgets and presented them before Congress each year. She was also a lead negotiator for the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 that averted a first-ever debt default and lifted the Nation’s debt ceiling. Ms. Young came to the executive branch with a load of legislative branch experience. She worked for the House Appropriations Committee for nearly 15 years and served the Committee as the Staff Director. So who better to discuss Congress’s power of the purse? Read the full transcript here .
The topic of this episode is, “What’s wrong with Congress?” I can’t recall the last time I met someone who said, “Congress is doing great. The first branch of government is getting things done and playing its central role in our Constitutional system. Nope. Almost everyone who shares their feelings about Congress with me despairs of the state of our national legislature. They think that it is playing second or third fiddle to the president and the courts. So what’s wrong with Congress? And are things as bad on Capitol Hill as we are told? Usually on this podcast I have a guest who answers my questions. But this time around I am going to share my own thoughts. So let me give you my top line conclusion before I share my thoughts Yes, Congress has some real problems. But it is not a hopeless case; nor is it as bad as it seems. Moreover, legislators, Hill staff, and we the people can improve Congress and revive representative government. We really can. Read the full transcript here.
The topic of this episode is, “What is the primary problem?” Every two years, we have congressional elections, which feature both primary elections and general elections. For nearly everyone who listens to this podcast, this seems like an eternal feature of governance system: primary elections are used to winnow the candidate field, and then general elections give voters the choice between two or maybe three finalists. But in truth, congressional primaries are a more recent development in our political history. They became the norm only about five or six decades ago. And like any other system of rules—be it the laws restricting investments or the rules of baseball—primaries are imperfect and susceptible to gaming by the players. Worse, according to some critics, primaries are fueling toxic partisanship within Congress and curbing its capacity to serve the public. Is there a primary problem ? And what is this problem? To help us think through this subject I have with me Nick Troiano. He is the author of The Primary Solution: Rescuing Our Democracy from the Fringes (Simon & Schuster, 2024). Nick is the executive director of Unite America , an organization that advocates for nonpartisan election reform and alternatives to partisan primary elections. Click here to read a full transcript of the episode.
The topic of this episode is, “What are congressional norms and why do they matter?” To many Americans, the United States Congress appears to be a rather nasty place. There are lawmakers calling each other names, introducing resolutions to censure legislators and boot them off committees, and generally behaving towards one another in beastly ways. At least twice in the last few years there were moments when it appeared a couple of members of the House of Representatives might well throw punches at one another. There is a lot of constitutional and procedural hardball being played in both the Senate and the House. Members are ignoring long-agreed-upon rules or stretching their meanings to justify partisan power plays. All of which prompts the question, “Is Congress losing the norms that once helped facilitate collective action amongst representatives and senators? My guest for this episode is Brian Alexander . He is an Associate Professor of Politics at Washington and Lee University. Brian is also the author of A Social Theory of Congress: Legislative Norms in the Twenty-First Century (Lexington Books, 2021), and he is the editor of a new volume titled The Folkways of Congress: Legislative Norms in an Era of Conflict (Brookings Institution Press, 2026). Click here to read a full transcript of the episode.
The topic of this episode is, “Should Congress pass a balanced budget amendment to the Constitution?” The federal government experienced a shutdown in autumn 20025, which is one of many that have occurred in the past 20 years. The nation also has racked up about $38 trillion in debt, and Congress and the president have not taken real action to right America’s fiscal ship. So should Congress pass a balanced budget amendment to the US Constitution? My guest Kurt Couchman says ‘Yes, it should.’ Kurt is the author of the new book, Fiscal Democracy in America: How a Balanced Budget Amendment Can Restore Sound Governance (Palgrave MacMillan, 2025). Kurt has been kicking around Capitol Hill for about 15 years. Presently he is a senior fellow at Americans for Prosperity, a group that promotes the principles and policies of economic freedom and liberty. Previously, Kurt worked for two members of Congress, and has had stints at the Cato Institute and the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, among other gigs. He has spent a lot of time engaged with Congress on matters relating to federal spending and the budget, so I am delighted to have him here with us to discuss the idea of a balanced budget amendment to the US Constitution. Click here for the full transcript to the episode.
The topic of this episode is, what are budget rescissions and pocket rescissions? Rescissions have been in the news recently. This past July President Donald J. Trump sent the House and Senate a rescissions message . This memorandum requested that Congress rescind, or take back, spending authority it had previously granted. Congress passed the legislation, which cut $9 billion from foreign aid, the U.S. Institute for Peace, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. A rescission of funds has not occurred since 1999, when former President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, struck a deal with the Republican-held House and Senate. Now the Trump administration is attempting a maneuver called a “pocket rescission.” What’s a pocket rescission? To answer that question I have as my guest my colleague, Dr. Philip Wallach. He is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is a colleague and a friend. At AEI he studies America’s separation of powers, with a focus on regulatory policy issues and the relationship between Congress and the administrative state. His latest book is Why Congress (Oxford University Press). Click here for a full transcript of the episode.
The topic of this episode is, “Was James Madison the first majority leader?” Both the Senate and the House of Representatives have a majority leader. At the time of the recording this podcast, Republican John Thune of South Dakota is the Senate majority leader, and Republican Steve Scalise of Louisiana is the House majority leader. Now, congressional scholars tend to argue that the majority leader emerged as a position in each chamber in 1899. Democrat Arthur B Gorman of Maryland was the first Senate majority leader , and Republican Sereno Elisha Payne of New York was the first House majority leader . My AEI colleague Jay Cost has a different view. He thinks the first majority leader appeared on Capitol Hill far earlier, and it was Virginia’s James Madison. So, we’re going to discuss that claim, which you can find in his recent piece, "Icons of Congress: James Madison — The First Majority Leader." So, we’re going to discuss that claim. Dr. Jay Cost is the Gerald R. Ford nonresident senior fellow at AEI and the author of the superb book, James Madison: America’s First Politician (2021), and other fine volumes on politics and history. Regular readers of UnderstandingCongress.org no doubt have seen Jay’s various reports and essays, and if you have not seen them, do have a look . Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is, “Does Congress's power to declare war mean anything?” In June of 2025, President Donald J. Trump directed US aircraft to drop 30,000 pound bombs on nuclear facilities in Iran. Some legislators in Congress and some media complained that this was a violation of the US Constitution. They note that Article I, Section 8 declares , “Congress shall have the power to declare war.” That same article of the Constitution also empowers the legislature to “provide for the common defense.” So, was the President’s action constitutional or not? And does Congress’s power to declare war mean anything? To help us think through these questions I have with me my AEI colleague, Gary Schmitt . He is the author of many books and articles on American government and he has written extensively on legislative and presidential war-making. Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is, Why are legislators on social media?” We’ve all seen it, and if you haven’t, well, you will soon enough. Social media posts by members of Congress. They are on Facebook, X.com (what used to be called Twitter), Bluesky, and the like. The average voter may be forgiven for wondering, “Why are these lawmakers hanging out online? Don’t they have anything better to do?” To try to help us better understand what is going on here, I have Annelise Russell, Associate Professor of Public Policy at the University of Kentucky. Dr. Russell has been studying legislators’ use of social media for years and is the author of Tweeting is Leading: How Senators Communicate and Represent in the Age of Twitter (Oxford, 2021). So who better to discuss this topic with us? Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is, “Is Congress getting anything done?” The 119th Congress convened in early January. Months have gone by, and there are lots of things happening in Washington, DC. But is it all being done by President Donald J. Trump? Is Congress itself doing anything? Gabe Fleisher is here to help us answer that latter question. He is the creator and editor of the must-read publication, Wake Up to Politics . He started this newsletter in 2011, and you may have seen him being interviewed CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and in various other major media. Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is a recent book that is titled, Congressional Deliberation: Major Debates, Speeches, and Writings 1774-2023 (Hackett 2024). The book is edited by Jordan T. Cash , a professor at James Madison College at Michigan State University, and by Kevin J. Burns , a professor at Benedictine College. As the book’s title indicates, its coverage is capacious: the very first excerpt comes from John Adams’ diary entries on the debates in the continental Congress, which he wrote in 1774. The books’ very last entry is taken from the debates that led to the ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy in 2023. Certainly, I could go on and on about all the parts of the book that fascinate me, but today we’re going to do something better than that. I am going to chat with one of the editors, Jordan Cash. Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is, “What does a member of the House of Representatives do all day?” It is not easy for the average voter to imagine how a member of Congress spends each day. We see images of them standing in the ornate chamber, talking with voters, and there’s no shortage of videos of them delivering speeches or denunciations of presidents or the other party. Some polling data indicates that many voters think legislators have cushy, part-time jobs and have legion staff doting upon them. But is life in Congress really like that? My guest is Derek Kilmer, who has written a chapter on this subject for Casey Burgat’s new edited volume, We Hold These "Truths": How to Spot the Myths that are Holding America Back (Authors Equity, 2025). And who better to talk about this topic than Derek Kilmer. He is a former member of Congress. He represented Washington state’s 6th district from 2013 to 2025. Mr. Kilmer served on the House of Representatives’ Appropriations Committee, which helps decide where federal spending goes. Listeners may also remember that Mr. Kilmer also co-led the House’s Modernization Committee, and he previously was on this podcast to explain the various things that were being done to make Congress work better. Click here to read the full transcript.
The topic of this episode is, “Can term limits fix Congress?” Many Americans, including possibly you, dear listener, look at Congress and think, “These people stink. They spend decades in Congress and are out of touch with the American people and pay too much attention to special interests.” This widespread feeling unsurprisingly leads to nearly 90 percent of Americans telling pollsters they favor term limits for legislators. So would term limits be a helpful reform? To help us think through this question I have with me Dr. Casey Burgat , a professor at George Washington University. He is the editor of a new volume, We Hold These Truths: How to Spot the Myths That are Holding America Back (Authors Equity, 2025). It's a fun book, and has contributions from a lot of smart people. The book also includes a chapter that Casey authored on this very topic of term limits for Congress. So who better for us to have on the program? Click here for the full transcript of the episode.
The topic of this episode is, “What is the lost history of Congress’s Offices of Legislative Counsel?” My guest is Beau Baumann , a doctoral candidate in law at Yale University. He studies the intersection of administrative law and legislation. He has published articles in a number of law journals and previously worked as an attorney for the US Department of Justice and clerked for a federal district court. He is the author of a really interesting, new article titled, “Resurrecting the Trinity of Legislative Constitutionalism.” In it he describes some of the lost history of Congress’s offices of legislative counsel (OLC). Click here for the full transcript of the episode.
The topic of this episode is, “What has become of the United States Senate and can it be revived?” The Senate did not have a good year in 2024. The chamber did not pass a budget resolution, nor did the Senate enact any of the dozen annual spending bills. Its year-end calendar of business listed dozens of pages of bills on matters large and small awaiting votes. Lots of floor time was spent on presidential nominations rather than on debating policy or amending legislation and voting on it. To help us get a better sense of what’s not going well in the Senate and what might be done to improve its functioning I have with me Professor Anthony J. Madonna. Tony is a professor at the University of Georgia. He is the author of many scholarly articles on Congress, and most recently published a piece for Political Research Quarterly titled, “ Interbranch Warfare: Senate Amending Process and Restrictive House Rules .”
