CargoAdmin, Bureaucrats, Moderators (CommentStreams), fileuploaders, Interface administrators, newuser, Push subscription managers, Suppressors, Administrators
5,236
edits
Senate: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
m (Updated short description) |
No edit summary |
||
| (10 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Organization | |||
|OrganizationName=Senate | |||
|OrganizationType=Legislative Branch | |||
|Mission=The United States Senate is one of the two chambers of the United States Congress, designed to represent the states equally, provide advice and consent on presidential appointments, and ratify treaties. It serves to legislate, conduct oversight, and promote a balance of power in the federal government. | |||
|ParentOrganization=Congress of the United States | |||
|CreationLegislation=Constitution of the United States (Article I, Section 3) | |||
|Employees=8000 | |||
|Budget=$1B (FY 2024, Senate operations and support agencies) | |||
|OrganizationExecutive=President of the Senate (Vice President of the United States); President pro tempore | |||
|Services=Legislation; Confirmation of federal officials; Treaty ratification; Oversight of executive actions; Impeachment trials | |||
|HeadquartersLocation=38.89056, -77.00904 | |||
|HeadquartersAddress=United States Capitol, Washington, DC 20510, USA | |||
|Website=https://www.senate.gov/ | |||
}} | |||
{{Short description|Upper house of the US Congress}} | {{Short description|Upper house of the US Congress}} | ||
The '''United States Senate''' is the [[upper chamber]] of the [[United States Congress]]. The Senate and the [[United States House of Representatives]] (which is the [[lower chamber]] of Congress) comprise the federal [[bicameral legislature]] of the [[United States]]. Together, the Senate and the House have the authority under [[Article One of the United States Constitution|Article One]] of the [[U.S. Constitution]] to pass or defeat federal legislation. The Senate has exclusive power to confirm [[President of the United States|U.S. presidential]] appointments to high offices, approve or reject treaties, and try cases of [[Impeachment in the United States|impeachment]] brought by the House. The Senate and the House provide a [[Separation of powers under the United States Constitution|check and balance]] on the powers of the [[Federal government of the United States#Executive branch|executive]] and [[Federal judiciary of the United States|judicial]] branches of government. | The '''United States Senate''' is the [[upper chamber]] of the [[United States Congress]]. The Senate and the [[United States House of Representatives]] (which is the [[lower chamber]] of Congress) comprise the federal [[bicameral legislature]] of the [[United States]]. Together, the Senate and the House have the authority under [[Article One of the United States Constitution|Article One]] of the [[U.S. Constitution]] to pass or defeat federal legislation. The Senate has exclusive power to confirm [[President of the United States|U.S. presidential]] appointments to high offices, approve or reject treaties, and try cases of [[Impeachment in the United States|impeachment]] brought by the House. The Senate and the House provide a [[Separation of powers under the United States Constitution|check and balance]] on the powers of the [[Federal government of the United States#Executive branch|executive]] and [[Federal judiciary of the United States|judicial]] branches of government. | ||
| Line 100: | Line 46: | ||
The Senate (not the judiciary) is the sole judge of a senator's qualifications. During its early years, however, the Senate did not closely scrutinize the qualifications of its members. As a result, four senators who failed to meet the age requirement were nevertheless admitted to the Senate: [[Henry Clay]] (aged 29 in 1806), [[John Jordan Crittenden]] (aged 29 in 1817), [[Armistead Thomson Mason]] (aged 28 in 1816), and [[John Eaton (politician)|John Eaton]] (aged 28 in 1818). Such an occurrence, however, has not been repeated since.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Youngest_Senator.htm|title=1801–1850, November 16, 1818: Youngest Senator|access-date=November 17, 2007|website=United States Senate|archive-date=December 26, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021226155950/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Youngest_Senator.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1934, [[Rush D. Holt Sr.]] was elected to the Senate at the age of 29; he waited until he turned 30 (on the next June 19) to take the oath of office. On November 7, 1972, [[Joe Biden]] [[1972 United States Senate election in Delaware|was elected to the Senate]] at the age of 29, which was only 13 days prior to his 30th birthday on November 20, 1972. Therefore, he reached his 30th birthday before the swearing-in ceremony for incoming senators in January 1973. | The Senate (not the judiciary) is the sole judge of a senator's qualifications. During its early years, however, the Senate did not closely scrutinize the qualifications of its members. As a result, four senators who failed to meet the age requirement were nevertheless admitted to the Senate: [[Henry Clay]] (aged 29 in 1806), [[John Jordan Crittenden]] (aged 29 in 1817), [[Armistead Thomson Mason]] (aged 28 in 1816), and [[John Eaton (politician)|John Eaton]] (aged 28 in 1818). Such an occurrence, however, has not been repeated since.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Youngest_Senator.htm|title=1801–1850, November 16, 1818: Youngest Senator|access-date=November 17, 2007|website=United States Senate|archive-date=December 26, 2002|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021226155950/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Youngest_Senator.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> In 1934, [[Rush D. Holt Sr.]] was elected to the Senate at the age of 29; he waited until he turned 30 (on the next June 19) to take the oath of office. On November 7, 1972, [[Joe Biden]] [[1972 United States Senate election in Delaware|was elected to the Senate]] at the age of 29, which was only 13 days prior to his 30th birthday on November 20, 1972. Therefore, he reached his 30th birthday before the swearing-in ceremony for incoming senators in January 1973. | ||
The [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] disqualifies as senators any federal or state officers who had taken the requisite oath to support the Constitution but who later engaged in rebellion or aided the enemies of the United States. This provision, which came into force soon after the end of the Civil War, was intended to prevent those who had sided with the | The [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution]] disqualifies as senators any federal or state officers who had taken the requisite oath to support the Constitution but who later engaged in rebellion or aided the enemies of the United States. This provision, which came into force soon after the end of the Civil War, was intended to prevent those who had sided with the Confederate States of Americafrom serving. That Amendment, however, also provides a method to remove that disqualification: a two-thirds vote of both chambers of Congress.<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Fourteenth Amendment |url=https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-14/#14_S1 |journal=Constitution of the United States |access-date=December 24, 2023 |archive-date=December 24, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231224120017/https://constitution.congress.gov/browse/amendment-14/#14_S1 |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
===Elections and term=== | ===Elections and term=== | ||
| Line 155: | Line 101: | ||
===Titles=== | ===Titles=== | ||
Like members of the House of Representatives, Senators use the prefix "[[The Honorable]]" before their names.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hickey |first=Robert |title=Use of the Honorable for U.S. Elected Officials |url=https://www.formsofaddress.info/honorable/#325 |access-date=August 3, 2022 |website=formsofaddress.info |date=May 18, 2020 |archive-date=November 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124061923/https://www.formsofaddress.info/honorable/#325 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mewborn |first=Mary K. |title=Too Many Honorables? |url=https://washingtonlife.com/backissues/archives/99nov/honorables.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101131703/http://www.washingtonlife.com/backissues/archives/99nov/honorables.htm |archive-date=January 1, 2016 |website=Washington Life}}</ref> Senators are usually identified in the media and other sources by party and state; for example, | Like members of the House of Representatives, Senators use the prefix "[[The Honorable]]" before their names.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hickey |first=Robert |title=Use of the Honorable for U.S. Elected Officials |url=https://www.formsofaddress.info/honorable/#325 |access-date=August 3, 2022 |website=formsofaddress.info |date=May 18, 2020 |archive-date=November 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124061923/https://www.formsofaddress.info/honorable/#325 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mewborn |first=Mary K. |title=Too Many Honorables? |url=https://washingtonlife.com/backissues/archives/99nov/honorables.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101131703/http://www.washingtonlife.com/backissues/archives/99nov/honorables.htm |archive-date=January 1, 2016 |website=Washington Life}}</ref> Senators are usually identified in the media and other sources by party and state; for example, Democratic majority leader [[Chuck Schumer]], who represents New York, may be identified as "D–New York" or (D-NY). And sometimes they are identified as to whether they are the junior or senior senator in their state (''[[#Seniority|see above]]''). Unless in the context of elections, they are rarely identified by which one of the [[Classes of United States senators|three classes of senators]] they are in. | ||
===Expulsion and other disciplinary actions=== | ===Expulsion and other disciplinary actions=== | ||
| Line 165: | Line 111: | ||
===Seating=== | ===Seating=== | ||
[[File:senatedesk.jpg|thumb|A typical Senate desk on the floor of the United States Senate]] | [[File:senatedesk.jpg|thumb|A typical Senate desk on the floor of the United States Senate]] | ||
One hundred desks are arranged in the chamber in a [[semicircular]] pattern and are divided by a wide central aisle. The [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] traditionally sits to the presiding officer's right, and the | One hundred desks are arranged in the chamber in a [[semicircular]] pattern and are divided by a wide central aisle. The [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic Party]] traditionally sits to the presiding officer's right, and the Republican Party traditionally sits to the presiding officer's left, regardless of which party has a majority of seats.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Seating Arrangement |url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/hdetail.cfm?id=11 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018103649/http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/hdetail.cfm?id=11 |archive-date=October 18, 2012 |access-date=July 11, 2012 |publisher=Senate Chamber Desks}}</ref> | ||
Each senator chooses a desk based on seniority within the party. By custom, the leader of each party sits in the front row along the center aisle. Forty-eight of the desks date back to 1819, when the Senate chamber was reconstructed after the original contents were destroyed in the 1812 [[Burning of Washington]]. Further desks of similar design were added as new states entered the Union.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Overview |url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/overview.cfm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026015630/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/overview.cfm |archive-date=October 26, 2020 |access-date=September 2, 2017 |website=United States Senate}}</ref> It is a tradition that each senator who uses a desk inscribes their name on the inside of the desk's drawer with a pen.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Desk Occupants |url=https://www.senate.gov/art-artifacts/decorative-art/furniture/senate-chamber-desks/desk-occupants.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121173704/https://www.senate.gov/art-artifacts/decorative-art/furniture/senate-chamber-desks/desk-occupants.htm |archive-date=January 21, 2022 |access-date=January 21, 2022 |website=United States Senate}}</ref> | Each senator chooses a desk based on seniority within the party. By custom, the leader of each party sits in the front row along the center aisle. Forty-eight of the desks date back to 1819, when the Senate chamber was reconstructed after the original contents were destroyed in the 1812 [[Burning of Washington]]. Further desks of similar design were added as new states entered the Union.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Overview |url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/overview.cfm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026015630/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/overview.cfm |archive-date=October 26, 2020 |access-date=September 2, 2017 |website=United States Senate}}</ref> It is a tradition that each senator who uses a desk inscribes their name on the inside of the desk's drawer with a pen.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Desk Occupants |url=https://www.senate.gov/art-artifacts/decorative-art/furniture/senate-chamber-desks/desk-occupants.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220121173704/https://www.senate.gov/art-artifacts/decorative-art/furniture/senate-chamber-desks/desk-occupants.htm |archive-date=January 21, 2022 |access-date=January 21, 2022 |website=United States Senate}}</ref> | ||
| Line 226: | Line 172: | ||
When the debate concludes, the motion in question is put to a vote. The Senate often votes by voice vote. The presiding officer puts the question, and members respond either "Yea/Aye" (in favor of the motion) or "Nay" (against the motion). The presiding officer then announces the result of the voice vote. A senator, however, may challenge the presiding officer's assessment and request a recorded vote. The request may be granted only if it is seconded by one-fifth of the senators present. In practice, however, senators second requests for recorded votes as a matter of courtesy. When a recorded vote is held, the clerk calls the roll of the Senate in alphabetical order; senators respond when their name is called. Senators who were not in the chamber when their name was called may still cast a vote so long as the voting remains open. The vote is closed at the discretion of the presiding officer, but must remain open for a minimum of 15 minutes. A majority of those voting determines whether the motion carries.<ref name = Majority/> If the vote is tied, the vice president, if present, is entitled to cast a [[United States Vice Presidents' tie-breaking votes|tie-breaking vote]]. If the vice president is not present, the motion fails.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Yea or Nay? Voting in the Senate |url=https://www.senate.gov/general/Features/votes.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511073831/http://www.senate.gov/general/Features/votes.htm |archive-date=May 11, 2011 |access-date=April 11, 2011 |publisher=Senate.gov}}</ref> | When the debate concludes, the motion in question is put to a vote. The Senate often votes by voice vote. The presiding officer puts the question, and members respond either "Yea/Aye" (in favor of the motion) or "Nay" (against the motion). The presiding officer then announces the result of the voice vote. A senator, however, may challenge the presiding officer's assessment and request a recorded vote. The request may be granted only if it is seconded by one-fifth of the senators present. In practice, however, senators second requests for recorded votes as a matter of courtesy. When a recorded vote is held, the clerk calls the roll of the Senate in alphabetical order; senators respond when their name is called. Senators who were not in the chamber when their name was called may still cast a vote so long as the voting remains open. The vote is closed at the discretion of the presiding officer, but must remain open for a minimum of 15 minutes. A majority of those voting determines whether the motion carries.<ref name = Majority/> If the vote is tied, the vice president, if present, is entitled to cast a [[United States Vice Presidents' tie-breaking votes|tie-breaking vote]]. If the vice president is not present, the motion fails.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Yea or Nay? Voting in the Senate |url=https://www.senate.gov/general/Features/votes.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511073831/http://www.senate.gov/general/Features/votes.htm |archive-date=May 11, 2011 |access-date=April 11, 2011 |publisher=Senate.gov}}</ref> | ||
Filibustered bills require a three-fifths majority to overcome the cloture vote (which usually means 60 votes). To pass a bill, a simple majority (usually 51 votes) is needed. Some news media have confused the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster with the 51 votes needed to approve a bill with for example '' | Filibustered bills require a three-fifths majority to overcome the cloture vote (which usually means 60 votes). To pass a bill, a simple majority (usually 51 votes) is needed. Some news media have confused the 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster with the 51 votes needed to approve a bill with for example ''USA Today'' erroneously stating "The vote was 58–39 in favor of the provision establishing concealed carry permit reciprocity in the 48 states that have concealed weapons laws. That fell two votes short of the 60 needed to approve the measure".<ref name="Majority">{{Cite web |date=July 31, 2009 |title=How majority rule works in the U.S. Senate |url=http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.view&backgroundid=381 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107141300/http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.view&backgroundid=381 |archive-date=January 7, 2021 |access-date=March 4, 2013 |publisher=Nieman Watchdog}}</ref> | ||
====Closed session==== | ====Closed session==== | ||
| Line 288: | Line 234: | ||
Political scientist William F. Connelly Jr., in his book "James Madison Rules America: The Constitutional Origins of Congressional Partisanship," argues that this structure "provides stability and continuity, balancing the rapidly changing political winds of the House of Representatives".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Connelly Jr. |first=William F. |title=James Madison Rules America: The Constitutional Origins of Congressional Partisanship |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |year=2010 |isbn=978-0742599659 |publication-date=June 16, 2010}}</ref> Yale legal scholar [[Akhil Reed Amar]], in his book "America's Constitution: A Biography," explains that the Senate's structure is integral to the federal system, ensuring that smaller states have a voice in the democratic process.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Amar |first=Akhil Reed |title=America's Constitution: A Biography |date=September 13, 2005 |publisher=Random House |year=2005 |isbn=978-1400062621}}</ref> Stanford political theorist Bruce E. Cain writes that equal representation in the Senate "fosters a more inclusive and representative democracy, where diverse regional interests are considered in the legislative process" ensuring that legislation must account for a wide array of perspectives, promoting broader national cohesion.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cain |first=Bruce |title=Democracy More or Less: America's Political Reform Quandary (Cambridge Studies in Election Law and Democracy) |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-1107612266 |publication-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref> | Political scientist William F. Connelly Jr., in his book "James Madison Rules America: The Constitutional Origins of Congressional Partisanship," argues that this structure "provides stability and continuity, balancing the rapidly changing political winds of the House of Representatives".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Connelly Jr. |first=William F. |title=James Madison Rules America: The Constitutional Origins of Congressional Partisanship |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers |year=2010 |isbn=978-0742599659 |publication-date=June 16, 2010}}</ref> Yale legal scholar [[Akhil Reed Amar]], in his book "America's Constitution: A Biography," explains that the Senate's structure is integral to the federal system, ensuring that smaller states have a voice in the democratic process.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Amar |first=Akhil Reed |title=America's Constitution: A Biography |date=September 13, 2005 |publisher=Random House |year=2005 |isbn=978-1400062621}}</ref> Stanford political theorist Bruce E. Cain writes that equal representation in the Senate "fosters a more inclusive and representative democracy, where diverse regional interests are considered in the legislative process" ensuring that legislation must account for a wide array of perspectives, promoting broader national cohesion.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cain |first=Bruce |title=Democracy More or Less: America's Political Reform Quandary (Cambridge Studies in Election Law and Democracy) |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=2014 |isbn=978-1107612266 |publication-date=December 8, 2014}}</ref> | ||
On the one hand, some claim the U.S. Senate has a bias against Republicans. However, since 1920, Democrats have controlled the Senate for about 58 years. During most of that period Senate Democrats earned a larger share of Senate seats than their share of the national House vote. Since filibuster rules were revised in 1975, the Democratic Party earned filibuster-proof supermajorities three times after the [[1974 United States Senate elections|1974]], [[1976 United States Senate elections|1976]] and [[2008 United States Senate elections|2008]] Senate elections. The last time Republicans earned the same was in the 1920s. Equal representation for smaller states was pivotal for the legislative accomplishments of the Clinton presidency, like the [[Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993]] ''',''' and the Obama presidency, like the [[Affordable Care Act]], at a time when Democrats earned more seats in lower population states like North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, West Virginia, Nebraska and Iowa.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Showah |first=Robert |date=July 5, 2022 |title=How Democrats Lost Their Majorities |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-democrats-lost-their-majorities-electoral-college-republicans-grass-roots-south-midwest-senate-11657030192#comments_sector |work= | On the one hand, some claim the U.S. Senate has a bias against Republicans. However, since 1920, Democrats have controlled the Senate for about 58 years. During most of that period Senate Democrats earned a larger share of Senate seats than their share of the national House vote. Since filibuster rules were revised in 1975, the Democratic Party earned filibuster-proof supermajorities three times after the [[1974 United States Senate elections|1974]], [[1976 United States Senate elections|1976]] and [[2008 United States Senate elections|2008]] Senate elections. The last time Republicans earned the same was in the 1920s. Equal representation for smaller states was pivotal for the legislative accomplishments of the Clinton presidency, like the [[Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993]] ''',''' and the Obama presidency, like the [[Affordable Care Act]], at a time when Democrats earned more seats in lower population states like North Dakota, South Dakota, Montana, West Virginia, Nebraska and Iowa.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Showah |first=Robert |date=July 5, 2022 |title=How Democrats Lost Their Majorities |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-democrats-lost-their-majorities-electoral-college-republicans-grass-roots-south-midwest-senate-11657030192#comments_sector |work=The Wall Street Journal |access-date=July 11, 2024 |archive-date=September 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240911125400/https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-democrats-lost-their-majorities-electoral-college-republicans-grass-roots-south-midwest-senate-11657030192#comments_sector |url-status=live }}</ref> | ||
==See also== | ==See also== | ||