This episode of Congress in Context explores the 119th Congress’s high-stakes struggle to define the boundaries of executive authority across national security, environmental protection, and immigration. We delve into the House’s contentious midnight debate over the reauthorization of FISA Section 702, which saw the defeat of a complex five-year reform package and the eventual passage of a stopgap extension through April 30, 2026. The program also analyzes the Senate’s unprecedented use of the Congressional Review Act to overturn a 20-year ban on copper-sulfide mining in Minnesota’s Boundary Waters, a move that critics argue sets a dangerous precedent for protected public lands nationwide. Additionally, we examine the failure of a War Powers Resolution ...