AND A DUO OF FORMER MINNESOTA HOUSE SPEAKERS LOOKS AHEAD TO THE FINAL TWO WEEKS OF SESSION.

>> Eric: BUT FIRST TONIGHT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CONTINUED TO DOMINATE HEADLINES THIS WEEK.

FRIDAY'S NEWS INCLUDED THE PRESIDENT'S PROPOSED 2026 BUDGET WHICH WOULD CUT DOMESTIC SPENDING TO ITS LOWEST LEVEL ON RECORD.

KATHRYN PEARSON TEACHES POLITICAL SCIENCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, THE ACADEMIC HOME OF MICHAEL INTA.

THANK YOU BOTH.

SCORCHED EARTH BUDGET, I READ ONE OF THE ONLINE THINGS TODAY.

IS THAT TOO DRAMATIC?

>> I DON'T THINK THAT'S TOO DRAMATIC.

IT IS DEFINITELY A BUDGET THAT MAKES SIGNIFICANT CUTS, AND EVEN AS REPUBLICANS SO FAR IN THE OUSE AND SENATE HAVE REALLY SORT OF ESSENTIALLY DONE WHAT THE PRESIDENT HAS ASKED THEM TO, THIS IS TEEING UP BIG BUDGET BATTLES IN THE HOUSE AND IN THE SENATE.

THIS WILL GO THROUGH THE RECONCILIATION PROCESS SO DEMOCRATS REALLY WON'T E INVOLVED BECAUSE IT ONLY REQUIRES 51 VOTES IN THE SENATE, IT CAN'T BE FILIBUSTERED SO REPUBLICAN MAJORITIES IN BOTH CHAMBERS CAN PASS THIS.

BUT REPUBLICANS IN VULNERABLE DISTRICTS ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE MEDICAID CUTS, THEY'RE WORRIED ABOUT SOME OF THE FEDERAL EMPLOYEES THAT ARE SPREAD OUT ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND WHAT SOME OF THE DOWNSIZING MEANS FOR THEM.

SO THERE COULD BE SOME INTRA PARTY REPUBLICAN BATTLES TO COME.

>> Eric: WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE BUDGET?

>> Cathy: WHAT DO YOU THINK?

IS >> I THINK LIKE KATHRYN SAID MANY OF THESE REPUBLICANS IN VULNERABLE DISTRIBUTES WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO STAND FOR REELECTION FOR A FEW YEARS, SO THE PRESIDENT CAN MAKE THESE PROPOSALS BUT A LOT OF TIMES HE'S NOT THINKING ABOUT THE PARTY.

HE'S LIKE I'M GOING TO DELIVER THESE CUTS AND EFFICIENCY AND BUT THESE CANDIDATES IN VULNERABLE DISTRICTS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO RUN AGAIN SO I THINK THEY'RE VERY FEARFUL.

I'M LOOKING TO SEE WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO, I HEARD THERE'S ALREADY PRIVATE CONVERSATIONS WITH THE PRESIDENT SAYING, HEY, YOU MIGHT WANT TO TONE THIS BACK, YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT THE PARTY.

I THINK WE'RE GOING TO SEE A LOT OF THAT BEHIND THE SCENES STUFF HAPPENING.

>> Cathy: SO FAR THE PRESIDENT SEEMS TO HAVE STEAMROLLED OVER CONGRESS OR MAYBE CONGRESS HAS ABDICATED ITS RESPONSIBILITY AT THIS POINT.

DO YOU THINK THEN THE BUDGET, IS THIS THE LINE WHERE PEOPLE WON'T CROSS?

>> I THINK SO, I THINK IT IS FAIR TO AY THAT GIVEN WE HAVE UNIFIED PARTY CONTROL IT IS REALLY SURPRISING HOW LITTLE LEGISLATION HAS PASSED THROUGH CONGRESS.

REPUBLICANS HAVE THE VOTES BUT WHAT WE'RE SEEING IS AN UNPRECEDENTED NUMBER OF EXECUTIVE ORDERS AND CONGRESS NOT FIGHTING BACK BECAUSE REPUBLICANS ARE IN CONTROL AND CONGRESS ALSO NOT HOLDING THE OVERSIGHT HEARINGS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT THAT WE WOULD EXPECT IN A SORT OF A TYPICAL SITUATION WHEN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HAS ALREADY BEEN DOWNSIZED BY 10%.

IS REALLY IS EXTRAORDINARY THE EXTENT TO WHICH CONGRESS HAS SORT OF SAT BACK AND NOT DONE ANYTHING BUT THESE BUDGET BATTLES WILL BE HUGE, BUT JUST TODAY THERE WERE SUPPOSED TO BE THREE DIFFERENT BUDGET RECONCILIATION MARKUPS BY REPUBLICANS IN THE HOUSE AND THEY'VE POSTPONED THEM BECAUSE OF INTERPARTY CONFLICT.

>> Eric: THE 100-DAY MARK IS ARBITRARY BUT MAYBE A GOOD TIME TO LOOKED AT A REPORT CARD ON THE RESIDENT'S PERFORMANCE.

WHAT HAS INTRIGUED YOU THE MOST AS A POLITICAL SCIENTIST?

>> OH, WOW, JUST THE SPEED, CHAOS, SHOCK AND AWE.

HE SAID HE WANTED TO DO SOMETHING ON IMMIGRATION.

MY GOD, HE HAS PEOPLE, HE'S PULLING THEM OFF THE STREET, YOU GOT THE VISUALS OF KRISTI NOEM, SHE'S UP THRU AT THE PRISON.

ALL OF THAT STUFF, SOME OF THE THINGS TRUMP SAID HE WAS GOING TO DO HE'S DONE AND HE HAS THE VISUALS TO KIND OF BACK IT UP.

DOGE WITH ELON USK SAYING, HEY, FEDERAL WORKERS, GO HOME.

I MEAN, SO THESE ARE VISIBLE, TANGIBLE THINGS.

I WANT TO GET RID OF WASTE AND INEFFICIENCY IN GOVERNMENT.

BUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HE CLAIMED THAT HE WAS GOING TO DO, REDUCE PRICES, CONTROL INFLATION, NOW UI MEAN YOU HEARD THE STATEMENT HE WAS LIKE, WELL, WITH THE TARIFFS, WELL, LITTLE KIDS, YOU KNOW, INSTEAD OF HAVING THREE DOLLS THEY CAN JUST HAVE ONE.

NO, ACTUALLY HE SAID MORE DOLLS, LIKE 20-SOMETHING DOLLS AND YOU COULD JUST HAVE TWO.

LIKE, EAH.

THE >> AND THE ECONOMY IS GOING TO BE IVOTAL IN THE 2026 MIDTERMS.

MIDTERMS ARE ALWAYS TOUGHER FOR THE PARTY OF THE PRESIDENT BUT IF THE ECONOMY IS DOING AS POORLY AS CONOMISTS ARE PREDICTING AFTER THE NEWS WITHIN THE LAST COUPLE DAYS OF THE SHRINKING OF THE ECONOMY WITH GDP THAT IS GOING TO BE PARTICULARLY PROBLEMATIC FOR REPUBLICANS HEADING INTO A MIDTERM ELECTION BECAUSE THE ECONOMY I MEAN ALL OF THESE THINGS FROM A POLITICAL SCIENCE PERSPECTIVE ARE REALLY SORT OF STUNNING, BUT THE ECONOMY IS WHAT VOTERS ARE MOST IN TUNE WITH.

>> Cathy: HOW MUCH OF WHAT HE'S DOING WILL STICK?

OR WILL THE COURTS STILL HOLD?

>> OOH, HAT'S THE MILLION-DOLLAR QUESTION, RIGHT?

YEAH, I THINK THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE ALREADY SEEN SOME PUSHBACK FROM THE COURTS EVEN THE U.S. SUPREME COURT.

AND I THINK SOME OF THE BUDGET CUTS THROUGH EXECUTIVE ORDER, AND I THINK CONGRESS IS GOING TO BE RELUCTANT REALLY TO MAKE MANY OF THE CUTS THAT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION IS PROPOSING.

BUT HE STILL IN TERMS OF SOME OF THESE CUTS THAT HE'S MAKING TO THESE INDEPENDENT AGENCIES, CIVIL SERVICE, I THINK IT'S GOING TO REALLY FORCE THE SUPREME COURT TO MAKE A DECISION ON IS THE BUDGET ACT OF 1974, IS THAT CONSTITUTIONAL?

I MEAN, IF THE CONGRESS APPROPRIATES MONEY FOR A CERTAIN AGENCY OR FOR FEDERAL PROGRAMS, THE PRESIDENT DOESN'T HAVE A RIGHT -- NIXON FOUND THAT OUT 1974 YOU CAN'T HOLD ONTO MONEY THAT CONGRESS APPROPRIATES.

>> Eric: HAS DONALD TRUMP TRANSFORMED THE PRESIDENCY, IN OTHER WORDS IN THE FUTURE, PRESIDENTS WILL BE MORE OPEN TO EXCUSING EXECUTIVE ORDERS AND SO FORTH?

>> I THINK AT THIS POINT THE ANSWER IS PROBABLY YES AND SORT OF I THINK BEHIND CLOSED DOORS SOME REPUBLICANS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THAT THINKING ABOUT WHAT THAT COULD MEAN FOR THE EXT DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT WHENEVER THAT MIGHT HAPPEN.

PRESIDENTIAL POWER HAS BEEN EXPANDING FOR DECADES, BUT TRUMP HAS ACCELERATED IT TO REALLY AN UNPRECEDENTED DEGREE.

IT'S A MARKED DIFFERENCE THAN HIS FIRST PRESIDENCY.

>> Cathy: WHAT DO YOU THINK, PROFESSOR?

>> WELL, I DON'T KNOW, IT DEPENDS ON WHO'S IN POWER, RIGHT?

I MEAN, POLARIZATION, DOES CONGRESS, YOU KNOW, IF YOUR PARTY IS IN POWER, DO YOU WANT TO JUST FURTHER YOUR AGENDA REGARDLESS OF THE CONSTITUTION AND THE REQUIREMENTS, OR ILL CONGRESS TAKE A STAND?

RIGHT NOW IT DOESN'T SEEM REPUBLICANS ARE WILLING TO TAKE THAT STAND.

I FIND IT HARD TO ELIEVE THAT A DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT WITH A MORE DIVERSE COALITION RACIALLY, ETHNICALLY, ECONOMICALLY, I THINK I WOULD FIND IT HARD TO SEE A DEMOCRATIC PRESIDENT DO MANY OF THE THINGS THAT DONALD TRUMP IS DOING RIGHT NOW.

>> Eric: TO BE CONTINUED.