Shaye Callanan ‘26
News Editor
Philip Wallach, Congress Scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, came to speak to Holy Cross students about the changing state of Congress within its constitutional limits. His talk was in recognition of Constitution Day which celebrates the signing of the Constitution on September 17th, 1787. Wallach began his talk by acknowledging how much the Trump Administration has extended the power of the executive branch, while mentioning that administrations before have also led to the expansion. He said that this is something worth noting, as the expansion of the executive branch leads to a depowering of the legislative.
Wallach’s main argument was that the role of Congress has decreased in a significant way. He argued that 21st-century policy-making is “more about going around Congress than through it”, which is an indication that the separate and equal branches may be becoming unequal. The legislative branch is the most deliberative and representative of all of the branches, and he believes that Congress letting go of its own abilities is a threat to our democracy.
He then gave three examples of areas in which he believes Congress has given up its power. He began with foreign policy, mentioning that while it has always been a more presidential than congressional area, it has still shifted more towards the executive in recent years. He believes this reveals a “new high on presidential dominance”, but it is not the area where presidents have truly usurped congressional rights.
His next example was tariffs, which he said marked an “enormous difference in Congress’s powers” and shows a “remarkable exercise of executive authority”. Trump had always claimed tariffs were going to be a strong policy area which he intended to change, and he has followed through with that promise. The Trump Administration has emphasized the emergency of the trade deficit and enacted tariffs between almost every country the US trades with, even those with which we have a trade surplus. Wallach brought up the question of why much of Congress has not opposed these tariffs, and he says it is partially because they want the Supreme Court to step in instead.
Unexpectedly, TikTok was the next area which he believes shows how Congress has lost power. He detailed the different grace periods and propositions related to the effort to ban TikTok. Interestingly, he cited the issue of fear of China in relation to TikTok, both due to misinformation and data collection, is one of the few current bipartisan issues, so one would think Congress could act upon it. He says Congress’s lack of action in either banning or negotiating with TikTok is shocking and shows a “remarkable passivity”.
In summary of these examples, he discussed why it is an issue that the legislature has lost power. America was never meant to rest this extent of power in the hands of one man, and the growing power of the president has made presidential elections and campaigns seem earth-shattering. If all the authority is vested in one person, the election of that one person seems life-or-death. Wallach argues that politics needs to be more fluid for it to be functional, and that the branches of government must be constantly interacting while exercising their individual powers and looking to the other branches when their separate powers are needed. He does not believe we are in an irreversible place, however, and there is hope for Congress to restore its power if it can agree on more, and therefore stand up for more.
Copy-edited by Ella Woei ’26
Featured image courtesy of the American Enterprise Institute
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