This is the Cato Daily Podcast for Thursday, June 16, 2016.

I'm Caleb Brown.

President Obama has been heard to worry about leaving a loaded weapon lying around for future presidents, but it doesn't seem that he's all

that interested in tyrant-proofing the White House before his departure. At a Cato

Institute Capitol Hill briefing in May, Republican Representative Jeb Henserling of Texas

discussed the atrophy powers of Congress against a beefed up executive branch.

So we are here to explore the question of whether or not the growth of the executive

branch is, quote unquote, a loaded weapon threatening our constitutional separation of powers.

You need not peak to the end of the remarks

to know that the answer is emphatically, unequivocally,

and tragically yes.

Many of you have heard this story before, but at the dawn of the republic during the Constitutional

Convention at its conclusion.

Franklin left Independence Hall and a lady was known to shout from him

afar.

Mr Franklin, what kind of government have you given us?

Most of you know the answer. a republic if you can keep it.

Unfortunately, we have not done a very good job in keeping faith with the

founder's vision of the republic and it remains an open question.

Will we be able to keep the republic in an era where the separation of powers has waned?

Instead of having a limited federal government operating from

clearly defined enumerated powers, we now have a Leviathan that has

...