Balance of Powers

KQED (PBS for San Francisco) has been running a show on 30 years after Watergate.

One of the things which struck me, and which I never really considered was how close the Watergate affair came to tumbling our system of government. Nixon believed (or claimed to believe anyway) that the president was immune to investigation by the senate and/or the courts. So, when the SCOTUS ordered him to release the tapes - there was some question as to whether or not he would comply. One of the people interviewed put it like this:

The President has an army, as commander in Chief. The senate doesn't have an army. Neither does the courts. So, people were concerned after the decision came down . What would happen if he didn't turn the tapes over?

Of course, Nixon did. And doing so, avoided a constitutional crises. It makes me wonder, though, what will happen if those on the right in congress, succeed in passing legislation restricting the courts ability to decide cases in certain areas (in this case, marriage).

What happens, if that occurs, when it is challenged (and it would be). What happens if the SCOTUS said congress doesn't have that power? Can SCOTUS tell congress what they can and/or can not restrict the court on?

I'm not overly worried that this will occur, but it is an interesting question...

For your perusal, here is the text of the bill that passed in the house:

And here is the section of the constitution which implies congress has the ability to restrict the courts.