# What is Congress Supposed To Do?

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/civics-on-the-rocks-6598827/what-is-congress-supposed-to-do
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/civics-on-the-rocks-6598827/what-is-congress-supposed-to-do.md
Podcast: [Civics on the Rocks](https://stenobird.com/podcast/civics-on-the-rocks-6598827)
Published: 2025-10-06T14:24:21+00:00
Episode link: https://CivicsOnTheRocks.podbean.com/e/what-is-congress-supposed-to-do/
Audio file: https://mcdn.podbean.com/mf/web/6wmet4ps3dgw6dcz/WhatIsCongressSupposedToDo.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/civics-on-the-rocks-6598827/episodes/what-is-congress-supposed-to-do
Duration seconds: 4611

## Resource

Mack, Steve, and Anne get into what one branch of the government isn’t doing right now. REFERENCES Congress is defined in Article I of the Constitution: Constitution Annotated. “Article I.” https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/article-1/ They didn’t want a king: Pereira, Ivan. “Nation’s Founders Pushed Against ‘Elected King’ When Framing Presidential Powers.” July 2, 2024. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/nations-founders-pushed-elected-king-framing-presidential-powers/story?id=111621798 You know how Aristotle called for “balanced government”: Smith, Steven. “9. The Mixed Regime and the Rule of Law: Aristotle’s Politics, VII” [YouTube video]. Yale Courses. https://youtu.be/mKLkb4LDi5M?si=NLTY5uPD9omUdXGZ The Senate, originally, chosen by the state legislatures: United States Senate. “Landmark Legislation: The Seventeenth Amendment to the Constitution.” https://www.senate.gov/about/origins-foundations/senate-and-constitution/seventeenth-amendment.htm The Seventeenth Amendment: Constitution Annotated. “Seventeenth Amendment.” https://constitution.congress.gov/constitution/amendment-17/ Part of the Progressive Era: Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “The Progressive Era Key Facts.” September 28, 2020. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/summary/The-Progressive-Era-Key-Facts “No appropriations shall be made but by law”: Constitution Annotated. “ArtI.S9.C7.1 Overview of Appropriations Clause.” https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/essay/artI-S9-C7-1/ALDE_00001095/ There’s Project 2025, too: Wendling, Mike. “Project 2025: The Right-Wing Wish List for Trump’s Second Term.” February 13, 2025. BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c977njnvq2do During Nixon’s administration, Nixon tried what is called “impoundment”: Kogan, Richard, “FAQs o…

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