A week from Monday, when the post-inauguration revelries, which include a “Deplorables Ball”, are no more, Donald J. Trump, the forty-fifth President of the United States of America, will for the first time become fully aware of the 115th Congress of the United States of America. Although he has met many of its members, he has not confronted the body as a whole. When he does, he might change his opinion of the Founding Fathers, who in their wisdom devised the Electoral College system that shields us from the tyranny of a few large states, and delivered the presidency to Mr. Trump despite his failure to obtain the votes of a majority of Americans.

Now he will be introduced to another of the Founders’ wise inventions, a system of checks and balances that operates to prevent any president from having everything his heart might desire. Only the House of Representatives can originate a bill that involves taxation or spending; the Senate has final say on treaties and Supreme Court appointments, among other things. Various presidents have eroded the power of an often supine Congress, but enough of it remains to teach our new president that even the most powerful man on the planet cannot push through his program without the broad consent of the Congress. In this case, a Congress populated by politicians who have no reason to do the president any favors.