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Oversight in action. Hapless Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of defence, faces questions in Congress about the orders given to federal troop son the streets of Washington DC.
Oversight refers to Congress's supervision of federal departments and agencies, as well as its review of presidential nominations and treaties by the Senate.
This monitoring is carried out through standing and select committees as needed. Several factors are thought to make oversight more effective in the United States than in parliamentary systems such as the UK's. US party discipline is traditionally weak, and congressional careers are typically centred on the permanent standing committees rather than advancement to the executive branch.
Despite notable exceptions, such as the investigations into Watergate and Iran Contra (which occurred some time ago), oversight is not consistently conducted effectively. In recent years, increased partisan loyalties have often hindered oversight efforts. For instance, when both the presidency and Congress were controlled by the same party, as during the Republican control from 2002 to 2006, oversight activities decreased, leading to accusations of neglect. 2024 -25 House Republicans have been criticised for ceding significant authority to the Trump administration on matters of spending and military action. Majority Leader John Thune expressed confidence that proposals to require legislative approval for military operations, such as those in Venezuela, would be rejected. Critics highlight a lack of congressional action regarding Trump's personal business entanglements, which they claim violate the Constitution's Emoluments Clauses.
The motivations of members of Congress also play a role. Like all politicians, members of Congress are largely motivated by the desire for re-election, with oversight offering minimal benefits to themselves or their constituents and not significantly enhancing their re-election prospects. While some members may aim to establish themselves as enthusiastic pursuers of executive shortcomings, they are a minority.
Partisan Oversight: Motivated by revenge for the Democratic investigations into Trump when the Republicans return to power in 2024, they initiated new investigations into the Biden administration. These oversight hearings were largely for political purposes and were widely considered spurious.
Biden Health and "Autopen" Inquiry: In late 2025, House Republicans concluded a major probe into whether White House aides concealed Biden's mental decline while he was in office. A central allegation involves the use of an autopen (an automated signature device) to sign executive orders and pardons; Republicans argue these actions could be void if Biden did not personally authorize them.
"Arctic Frost" Investigation: Senate Republicans, led by Chuck Grassley, recently disclosed documents alleging that the Biden-era FBI surveilled nearly 100 Republican organizations and individuals. Referred to as the "Arctic Frost" probe, Republicans characterize it as a "political witch hunt" and a weaponization of federal law enforcement against political rivals.
Prostate Cancer and Mental Fitness: Following reports of an advanced prostate cancer diagnosis for Joe Biden in mid-2025, Republicans launched new hearings to determine what staff knew about his health and whether it impacted his ability to serve.
Minnesota Fraud Scandal: In January 2026, the House Oversight Committee held hearings on alleged large-scale misuse of federal funds in Minnesota, questioning if the administration "turned a blind eye" to systemic fraud.
Political factors often influence the effectiveness of Congress in conducting oversight. In times of divided government, the majority party in one or both houses of Congress often has a motivation to scrutinise their rivals in the executive branch. When the Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives in 2018, they initiated investigations into President Trump, ultimately leading to his first impeachment. When the Republicans controlled Congress during the second Trump Administration they initiated investigations into the Biden administration toward allegations of a "cover-up" regarding former President Joe Biden’s health and the legitimacy of his executive actions.
Oversight tends to be weaker during periods of unified government, as the president's party typically dominates Congress. However, this dynamic is contingent on the president having control over their party. Despite having a majority in both houses of Congress at the beginning of his presidency, President Trump was unable to fulfil his promise of repealing Obamacare within his first 100 days. Presidents with high public approval ratings may encounter less resistance from Congress. The historically low public approval ratings of Congress can make it politically challenging for them to impede the actions of a popular president. For instance, following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, President George W. Bush's approval ratings soared to 90%, resulting in his administration facing minimal congressional scrutiny in the subsequent years.
Case Study Trump's Taxes
Unlike all recent presidents Trump did not reveal his tax record when he was elected. After the Democrats gained control of the House of Representatives committees began oversight investigations in to Trumps finances and subpoenaed his tax records - Trump fought this in the courts. The Supreme Court decided that while in principle Congress had the right to subpoena the president's finances they had not refined their request narrowly enough and so returned the case to the lower courts (to be decided sometime in 2021) but they did decided that the President could be subpoenaed by the New York prosecutors instigating his possible obstruction of justice. The cases were Trump v Mazars (returned to lower courts) and Trump v Vance (New York)
In Congress, oversight comes in many forms including:
In Congress, oversight comes in many forms including:
Hearings and investigations conducted by standing or special congressional committees.
Consulting with or getting reports directly from the president.
Giving its advice and consent for certain high-level presidential nominations and for treaties.
Impeachment proceedings conducted in the House and tried in the Senate.
House and Senate proceedings under the 25th Amendment should the president become disabled or the office of the vice president become vacant.
Senators and representatives serving on presidentially appointed commissions.
Special studies conducted by congressional committees and support agencies such as the Congressional Budget Office, the General Accountability Office, the Office of Technology Assessment, and the Congressional Research Service.
Confirmation Hearings
Confirmation Hearings
Political Appointments US Civil Service
Appointment of Members of the Supreme Court
Over 1200 senior appointments — cabinet members, some senior members of the EXOP and all federal judges, including Supreme Court Justices — are scrutinised, usually through Senate committee hearings, with the Senate having
the right to confirm a presidential nomination by a 50% + vote. This appointment process has
become more politicised in recent years, although a president can expect almost all of his or her cabinet members nominated. The extent of scrutiny depends partly on the nature of party control of the presidency and the Senate.The vast majority of presidential appointments are uncontroversial, except for those to the judiciary. The process of confirmation by the Senate has been criticized because few nominees are rejected, and there is a long history of the confirmation of administration officials who later prove to be incompetent.
However, recent Democrat presidents have found their appointments are routinely delayed and blocked by Republicans in the Senate. Republican partisanship
December 5th, 2023 Senate confirmed more than 400 military promotions after @SenTuberville (R-AL) dropped his months-long blockade of the nominations, which he held up in protest of the Pentagon's abortion policies
January 2025 President-Elect, Trump has asked the candidates to lead the Senate to let him appoint officials to his new administration without going through confirmation hearings on Capitol Hill. This request came as a Republican government began to form following his election win.
The president-elect called for support for "recess appointments." These appointments allow the president to fill positions while the Senate is temporarily not in session, which helps avoid the lengthy confirmation process that can delay or block these appointments.
‘Necessary and Proper’
‘Necessary and Proper’
While the Constitution does not formally grant Congress the authority to oversee the actions of the executive branch, oversight is clearly implied in the many enumerated powers of Congress. The power of congressional oversight is reinforced by the “necessary and proper” clause (Article I, Section 8, Clause 18) of the Constitution, which grants Congress the power
“To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government of the United States, or in any Department or Officer thereof.”
The necessary and proper clause further implies that Congress has the power to investigate the actions of the executive branch. It would be impossible for Congress to apply its oversight powers without knowing whether federal programs are being administered properly and within their budgets and whether executive branch officials are obeying the law and complying with the legislative intent of the laws.
The U.S. Supreme Court has confirmed the investigative powers of Congress, subject to constitutional safeguards for civil liberties. In the 1927 case McGrain v. Daugherty, the court found that, in investigating actions taken by the Department of Justice, Congress had constitutionally considered a subject “on which legislation could be had or would be materially aided by the information which the investigation was calculated to elicit.”
Two famous examples of oversight
In the late 1960s, televised hearings of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the so-called Pentagon Papers solidified public opposition to continued U.S. participation in the Vietnam War, hastening the end of the conflict.
Less than a year after details of the 1973 Watergate scandal were exposed, the House Judiciary Committee's impeachment proceedings against President Richard Nixon resulted in his resignation from office.
Case study Hunter Biden
Case study Hunter Biden
Increasing partisanship is undermining the validity of Congressional oversight.House Republicans continue to investigate the Biden family's finances, and they opened an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden in September as part of that effort.
They allege they have uncovered evidence of the president's knowledge of and role in his family members' domestic and foreign business dealings.
They have not yet shown President Biden committed an impeachable offence or provided any evidence of wrongdoing.
The panel escalated its probe on 8 November by sending subpoenas to Hunter Biden, as well as six of his relatives and two former associates.
Feb 21, 2025
Congress is designed, among other things, to write laws and oversee the actions of the federal bureaucracy to make sure that agencies execute the laws faithfully. Under the control of a GOP firmly in the grips of Donald Trump, Congress has been virtually silent as the president seeks to expand executive power at the expense of congressional authority.
“Congressional Republicans [now] refuse to conduct oversight of the executive when their own party is present,” said Mickey. On one front, they are pressured by the power Trump and Elon Musk hold to back a primary challenger to defeat them. Worse, “as the ones who are about to retire keep telling us, they’re also fearful of the threats of violence that they and their families are receiving from the current of violence on the extreme right,” said Mickey. “So it kind of is understandable that they’re being quiet.”
An article by Larry Diamond, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, made the same point: “The most underestimated element in the current crisis of our democracy is the degree to which many politicians fear for their lives if they do anything forthright to cross or defy President Trump.”
Charlotte Cavaillé is an assistant professor of public policy at the University of Michigan’s Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. Robert Mickey is an associate professor of political science at the University of Michigan. They are both affiliated with the Center for Political Studies at the Institute for Social Research.
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