Is Congress giving up its control to the White House?

WASHINGTON — It's been a busy year on Capitol Hill. But there's not necessarily much to show for it.

As of this Friday, only 47 bills have been passed and signed into law by President Donald Trump this year, according to congressional records. That's low in comparison to the 175 signed into law in 2024 by former President Joe Biden — but an improvement compared to the mere 27 bills that were signed in 2023, a year plagued by chaos in the House and tiny congressional majorities.

It's not much, but one could argue that the passage of HR1, Trump's massive tax package, could count for several bills wrapped into one. After all, the 300-plus page bill covered a lot of ground and took months to complete.

But if you ask around, you'll find some lawmakers growing restless over how difficult it is to bring legislation to the floor — and even more who lament they can't get much done without the direct blessing of Trump.

"You have a lot of intelligent, hard-working people who gave up a lot of things to be here in Congress, only to find out that all they get to do is come here and rubber-stamp whatever Donald Trump wants, and that's kind of humiliating," Kentucky GOP Rep. Thomas Massie, who has become one of Trump's biggest critics in Congress, told CNN last week.

He didn't exactly give a glowing endorsement of the job: "You could get a monkey to do this job."

That rubber-stamping mentality could be why there's a record number of retirements in the House so far this year — with warnings there are more to come.

Take Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, for example. Once the loudest ally of Trump, she has since turned into a raging critic of the Republican Party as a whole — especially under its current leadership.

"Myself and many of my colleagues came courageously roaring into 2025 with legislation that matched the 2024 electoral mandate only to be totally sidelined by (Speaker Mike) Johnson under full obedience of the WH," Greene said in a post on X last month, lamenting that executive orders from the president are not enough, as they are only temporary.

Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who is leaving Congress to run for higher office, wrote in an op-ed for The New York Times, "The obstacles to achieving almost anything are enough to make any member who came to Washington with noble intentions ask: Why am I even here?"

So, yeah. There's growing frustration. But it might be a little more nuanced than how these members — who are known for trying to grab the spotlight — put it.

Those in the Utah delegation have hinted that they also want Congress to seize its legislative responsibilities, but they haven't given up on working with the Trump administration to do so.

"The separation of powers matters no matter who sits in the Oval Office," Rep. Celeste Maloy, R-Utah, tells me. "That's why the Constitution gives Congress clear tools and responsibilities. This includes the legislative work of funding the government, conducting oversight hearings, and passing major legislation, all of which this Congress has prioritized."

As part of that, Maloy said she would continue working to make sure Congress does its job — and does it well.

Rep. Blake Moore, R-Utah, acknowledged there have been policies enacted by the Trump administration without Congress' input that have prompted concerns among Utahns. But he said he's made sure to communicate those to the White House.

Moore told me: "The administration's trade posture has posed major challenges for Utah businesses, and my team and I have worked hand-in-hand with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to communicate these concerns. The administration has certainly secured a number of great wins in this space, and we're working to codify those, but we also must seek to get our trade environment to a workable place so the market can have some predictability."

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, went even further to defend how Trump's actions — calling it a "long overdue correction" from past administrations that have handed power to federal agencies with unelected leaders.

"Today, we're seeing tantrums in Washington over President Trump's authority to hire, fire, and call the shots within the executive branch, because the 'deep state' has spent almost a century insulating itself from accountability to the American people through their chosen leader in the White House and representatives in Congress," Lee said in a statement.

Time will tell if lawmakers will push for more authority — as we've already seen through discharge petitions, as I've previously reported — or if they'll just head for the exits.

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