GOP senators disagree with Trump on both points

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Congress is the first branch listed in the US Constitution.

But for many years executive power has clearly risen. This was before President Donald Trump’s second term.

In some ways, Trump is a continuation of this trend. But in many cases, he is trying to expand his presidential powers in unprecedented ways, including by deploying the National Guard widely across the country, dismantling independent agencies, and unilaterally deploying billions of private and public dollars in ways we are still only understanding.

However, last week we saw some significant pushback from some Republicans in Congress. Their numbers are not large, but GOP lawmakers who have broken with the president are doing so, unambiguously, in two key areas.

Venezuela war powers

Watch the clip in the player above.

The house has been full of surprises lately. But not the Senate. Until last week.

That’s when five Republican senators voted with Democrats to advance a measure to immediately end or against all military actions in Venezuela. Any future action must be approved by Congress.

The Senate is expected to vote on the measure on Tuesday. It will likely pass.

The measure would have ripple effects across the Senate calendar, taking up valuable space as the chamber comes under pressure on a range of issues, including government funding.

Read more: 5 things on Congress’s agenda right now

The president delivered sharp blows to these five Republicans. On Tuesday, Senate Republicans held a group debate, including senators. Our initial report of this meeting is that none of them changed their views.

Now this bill will almost certainly not become law. It will be blocked in the House of Representatives or by the President himself.

But it’s a change of temperature in Trump’s climate at the Capitol. And she’s not the only one.

Jerome Powers

Watch the clip in the player above.

In breaking news on Sunday, we learned that Trump’s Justice Department was investigating Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.

In a similarly unprecedented move, Powell responded with a video statement in which he emphasized the rule of law and said that “it is a question of whether the Fed will be able to continue to set interest rates based on evidence and economic conditions — or whether monetary policy will instead be guided by political pressure or fearmongering.”

He watches: Yellen says Trump’s intimidation of the Fed’s leadership threatens economic stability

The news and response sparked some quick and pointed reactions in Congress.

North Carolina Republican Senator Thom Tillis said the investigation called into question the credibility of the Justice Department itself. Shortly after, Senator Lisa Murkowski, Republican of Alaska, joined in the blunt response, writing: “It is clear that the administration’s investigation is nothing more than an attempt at coercion.” It also called for an investigation into the Ministry of Justice.

The decline continued from there. This morning, Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney in Washington, D.C., appeared to be aiming for a softer tone. She wrote that the Justice Department’s investigation was due to Powell’s lack of response. She did not say that the primary investigation was completed.

Tillis said he would not consider any Trump nominees for the Fed position until that issue is resolved, a threat that has standing in the Senate Banking Committee, which handles those nominees.

What will happen next?

Wednesday is another great day.

Senators intend to discuss and vote on Venezuela. Everyone in Washington will be watching how the branches deal with the pressure exerted by the White House on Powell.

I will be watching to see if more members of Congress say publicly what they believe in private.