Congress, and not the presidency, used to be the predominant power of the U.S. government. In this interview, we discuss the history of how politics, populism and polarization changed the balance of power in our government.

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In this interview:

►Where does the Constitutional principle of the "separation of powers" and "coequal" branches of government come from?

►How did John Locke and baron Montesquieu impact the Federalist papers?

►What are the powers that the Constitution grant to Congress or preserve for the president?

►In the beginning, which had more power: Congress or the Presidency?

►How did the following change the power of the presidency?

• Andrew Jackson
• Abraham Lincoln
• Theodore Roosevelt
• Franklin Roosevelt
• The industrial revolution
• The Civil Rights movement
• Polarization of our politics

►What is presidentialism and what are its perils?

►Why is presidential democracy an oxymoron?

🚩About My 191st Guest Scholar:

Dr. Sidney Milkis is a professor of politics at the Miller Center and in the Dept. of Politics at the University of Virginia (UVA), and the Interim Director of the Program on Constitutionalism and Democracy there. He is co-founder and co-director of an all-university initiative, Project on Democracy and Capitalism, which is exploring the complex relationship between self-government and markets. Dr. Milkis has published extensively on democracy and the presidency, including his 2025 book, which we discuss in this interview.

Watch this interview: 🎞️ https://bit.ly/HbN-S5E49-YT-Presidentialism

🚩My Recommendations:

►S3E1, Prof. Joel Paul: Pres. Jackon & Trump & GOP History

►S5E15, Prof. Adam Cox: Presidency's Awesome Immigration Power

►S5E22, Prof. Julian Davis Mortenson: Unitary Presidency

🚩Adel Aali

host & producer

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