Kevin R. Kosar

Does Congress’s Power to Declare War Mean Anything? (With Gary Schmitt) - UnderstandingCongress.org 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 ...

“There’s a kind of unwritten agreement; it’s one thing to have large ships firing missiles into foreign territory or bombs dropping from the sky, but it’s far another thing when you’re talking about putting US soldiers physically into another country"
www.understandingcongress.org/podcast/does...

Choosing congressional irrelevance - UnderstandingCongress.org On February 7, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado offered the following advice on X: “Dear Speaker Johnson, Simply pass every executive order President Trump has signed, and you will go down as the great...

"If we do not believe in reasoning together, there is no need for Congress to mount a comeback as an institution."
-Philip Wallach

www.understandingcongress.org/2025/08/04/c...

Choosing congressional irrelevance - UnderstandingCongress.org On February 7, Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado offered the following advice on X: “Dear Speaker Johnson, Simply pass every executive order President Trump has signed, and you will go down as the great...

"Americans can be forgiven for thinking Congress has become about as useful as a human appendix—prone to inflammation and perhaps best removed entirely."
-Philip Wallach

www.understandingcongress.org/2025/08/04/c...

I named her Crowlista Flockhart.

Analysis | After 47 years on the political beat for The Post, it’s transition time Dan Balz writes on his retirement from full-time work at The Washington Post after 47 years.

You will be missed, Dan Balz.

Congrats, @ktumulty.bsky.social !
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/202...

The new issue of Beverages, Books, and More is posted. Special and belated thanks to @daveweigel.bsky.social for his book, The Show That Never Ends, which was a delight I highlighted in the newsletter. beveragesbooksandmore.substack.com/p/summer-rea...

Enjoy!

Reading the New Conservatives – Richard M. Reinsch II Populists and postliberals claim to be the pioneers of a “new conservatism”—but all they really advocate is economic sophistry.

“The wages of nonsupervisory workers—roughly the bottom 80 percent of workers by pay, including manufacturing workers and service-sector workers who are not managers—have grown by around 60 percent over the past two generations." lawliberty.org/book-review/...

Am sending you an email!

Here's my latest piece for the Washington Examiner. This is a very weird year in budgeting and things may go off the rails entirely.

www.understandingcongress.org/2025/07/26/c...

“The problem is less that the world is malign than that it’s complicated. The world we’ve built for ourselves is complex to the point of being paralyzing. Then we wonder why people feel hopeless and angry.”

Stephen Starring Grant, Mailman
amzn.to/419RVhu

House GOP heads home to avoid Epstein votes Democrats told to keep up the pressure on Epstein in August

👀"the House Appropriations Committee made some unusual news. Working on a government funding bill, the panel voted to require the Kennedy Center to name its opera house after First Lady Melania Trump - if the Kennedy Center wants federal funding." jamiedupree.substack.com/p/house-gop-...

Congress in plain English: Why does Congress take a summer break? - UnderstandingCongress.org The House of Representatives recessed on Wednesday this week. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) made this move to head off a bipartisan push to force votes on a resolution to force the executive branch to p...

The Epstein discharge petition situation led Speaker Johnson to shutter the House before the scheduled spring break. Speaking of which, why does Congress recess in the summer? Jay Cost explains.
www.understandingcongress.org/2025/07/23/c...

What are the qualities that make a good legislator? Also: The Senate and House of Representative disagree on legislative branch funding.

“What are the qualities that make a good legislator?”

Was Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) being a good legislator when he objected to the results of the 2020 presidential election because some of his constituents thought the race had been stolen?
open.substack.com/pub/kevinrko...

Appropriators advance Legislative Branch bill without GAO cuts - Roll Call Senate appropriators approved a fiscal 2026 Legislative Branch bill that would boost spending for Congress while avoiding cuts to the GAO.

RE: Senate FY2026 leg branch bill: "It would keep the GAO steady at $811.9 million for the coming fiscal year, unlike the bill backed by House Republican appropriators last month, which would slash funding for the nonpartisan watchdog nearly in half."
rollcall.com/2025/07/10/a...

Quite the week for MAGA.

The Trump Admin says there is no Epstein list and he croaked himself, and declares that it it supporting Ukraine in its fight against Russia by sending more arms.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act became law quickly. Here's why. - UnderstandingCongress.org On July 4, Donald Trump signed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) into law, in a celebration complete with a military flyover and a ceremonial banging of the Speaker’s gavel. The president had bee...

Was the passage of OBBBA expeditious? Certainly – when compared to the past few presidencies. Only 165 days separated Trump’s second inauguration on January 20th and the signature into law of one of his major legislative priorities.

www.understandingcongress.org/2025/07/15/t...

How an Octogenarian Became One of Democrats' Biggest Posters Rep. Rosa DeLauro, who is 82 years old, is one of the most prominent congressional Democrats online.

A resource-allocation decision.

"Her online rise isn’t incidental. DeLauro has a team of three chronically online staffers in their 20s who are eager to pitch her fresh ideas that could showcase her work in Congress..."
www.notus.org/democrats/ro...

Icons of Congress: James Madison — The First Majority Leader - UnderstandingCongress.org In his 1836 eulogy of James Madison, John Quincy Adams called the late president the “Father of the Constitution.” It was not the first time Madison was called that; Jared Ingersoll toasted the former...

A new series has begun: Icons of Congress!

Jay Cost starts us with James Madison, who he deems the first majority leader. www.understandingcongress.org/2025/07/09/i...

Why does Congress still thrive on a social media diet?

Great question! Let's talk about it...

(thanks @kevinrkosar.bsky.social )

Why DOGE Failed – Andy Smarick Cutting waste, fraud, and abuse in government spending is a noble aim—but the DOGE approach was doomed to fail from the start.

"Technocrats believe they know best; that process stuff merely gums up the works... Worse, they often believe their inexperience is a virtue—they have fresh eyes, they haven’t been corrupted, etc." lawliberty.org/why-doge-fai...

My latest for the Examiner: Congress (again) tries to ban insider trading by its members. www.understandingcongress.org/2025/07/07/c...

Why Are Legislators on Social Media? (with Annelise Russell) - UnderstandingCongress.org 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,...

Why are members of Congress on X.com, BlueSky, etc.? Don't they have anything better to do?

Prof. Annelise Russell explains: www.understandingcongress.org/podcast/why-...

A tribute to the late, great CRS specialist, Morton Rosenberg.

"Above and beyond his impressive body of legal scholarship, Mort was a generous mentor, teacher, and advisor to CRS and congressional staff."

www.congress.gov/119/crec/202...

Fresh off Trump firings, Library of Congress stares down a proposed cut The past two months have brought uncertainty for the Library of Congress, after the president fired two top leaders and now as GOP appropriators take aim.

“We have a GOP majority in both chambers. They don’t want to have a public fight with the president over who controls the Library of Congress and copyright office and Congressional Research Service.” rollcall.com/2025/06/25/l...

House GOP holdouts threaten revolt over Trump and Senate’s tax bill The Senate has overhauled President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, sparking serious concerns over federal spending and social programs in the House.

This is bicameralism. Maybe they should appoint a conference committee.

"Now to many House Republicans, the legislation looks unrecognizable — and no longer adheres to hard-fought compromises lawmakers in the lower chamber secured just a month ago." www.washingtonpost.com/business/202...

I think that is right. And hopefully it does not pass the full House approps committee today.

I asked famed writer Oz Clarke what drew him to writing about wine.

"Girls, basically" he replied.

open.substack.com/pub/beverage...

House Republicans Advance Plan to Halve GAO's Funding Provisions Would Curbs GAO’s Authorities on Impoundment and Oversight and Prevent GAO from Serving Non-Appropriators & Non-Defense Committees

Oh, House Republicans...

"The bill would prevent GAO from using its statutory authority to bring a civil lawsuit against the White House should it determine the administration unlawfully impounded funds."

It also would cut GAO's funding 50%.

firstbranchforecast.substack.com/p/house-repu...

Congress in Plain English: The War Power - UnderstandingCongress.org President Donald Trump’s recent authorization of the use of “bunker-buster” bombs against Iranian nuclear facilities has touched off a debate over the war-making power of the presidents. Democratic Se...

The president "is invested with the powers that require such capacity. Congress, as a deliberative body, cannot handle such duties; but, as the representatives of the people, it is tasked with determining whether a conflict is in the public interest." www.understandingcongress.org/2025/06/24/c...

House Bill Would Lay Waste to Congress's Watchdogs and Information Experts Appropriators propose a 50% cut to GAO, 12% cut to the Library of Congress

Good grief. Penny-wise and pound-foolish.

"the House Appropriations Committee ... would slash the Government Accountability Office’s budget by 50 percent and the Library of Congress by 12 percent from FY 2024 levels" firstbranchforecast.substack.com/p/house-bill...