Senate Background
The U.S. Senate is a legislative body that
comprises one portion of the United States Congress. There are 100 Senate seats
within the Senate, which are filled by two elected Senators from each State
within the United States. The Senate has many responsibilities and obligations
to fulfill, and therefore, a number of Committees have been created within the
Senate.
Senate House Library
The United States Senate depends upon the Senate
House Library to acquire access to a range of valuable information. In addition
to containing books, this facility also stores vital Congressional documents in
a database that is accessible to Senators who visit the library. The library is
located in Washington D.C., and both public and private tours are
available.
Senate Vote
When a Senate bill is presented to Congress, both
the Senate and the House of Representatives must agree on the specifications
within the bill. In order to determine the Senate’s stance on a bill, a Senate
vote must occur. During this process, all current Senators will state whether
they approve or oppose the bill. In order for the bill to be passed, the
majority of the Senate must approve it.
Senate Jobs
Senators play a vital role in the establishment of
new legislation in the United States. These individuals also maintain many
additional responsibilities. Senate jobs vary in regard to rank, income, and
authority, however, many individuals who are employed in Senate jobs earn more
than $100,000 annually. Employment as a Senator is difficult to achieve, as an
individual must be elected to this position.
Roman Senate vs.
U.S. Senate
The Roman Senate functioned as an important
government body in Ancient Rome. The U.S. Senate was created based upon the
Roman model. There are important similarities and differences that exist
between the U.S. Senate and the Roman Senate. In general, the United States
Senate holds more direct legislative power than its Roman counterpart.
Senate Elections
The United States Senate is composed of two
different Senators from each of the 50 states, resulting in a total of 100
Senators serving in this Government body. The residents of each State are able
to vote in the Senate elections in order to select the Senators that will
represent their State. These elections occur every two years.
Senate Polls
Senate polls are public opinion polls that
details the Senators that are favored by the public. The Senate results are
extremely important, as a State’s Senators will be responsible for ensuring
that the residents of that State have their interests effectively represented.
The Senate polls predict the way in which the public will vote during the
Senate election.
Senate Debate
Senate votes can be altered or swayed through
Senate debate. Senate debate is the process during which Senators openly
discuss legislation and additional concerns that are brought before the United
States Senate. Senators are able to voice their opinions regarding the issues
that are being considered. Throughout history, Senate debates have had major
impacts on Senate voting records.
Senate Bills
The term Senate bills is often used to refer to
bills that originate in the United States Senate. While some types of bills may
originate in the Senate, all bills must be approved by the Senate before they
are instated. Examples of some controversial Senate bills include Senate bill
2433 and Senate bill 1738.
Senate Impeachment
In the event that a Senator is suspected of
committing a criminal act, Congress has the ability to initiate Senate
impeachment and bring criminal charges against the offending Senator. If
impeachment occurs, the Senator will be removed from office. Impeachment can
occur with any Government official, regardless of his/her office or rank.
Senate Bailout Vote
The Senate bailout vote occurred when the Senate
voted on a bill intended to provide financial lending institutions with the
funds needed to recover from the failure of mortgage-backed securities. A
similar and equally controversial vote surrounded the Senate stimulus bills. In
recent years, many controversial bills have passed through the Senate.
Insurance and financial bailouts have been the topic of many of these
bills.
Filibuster
A filibuster is a procedure that occurs when an
individual within a Government body chooses to prevent or delay an impending
vote. Filibusters are usually limited to decision-making bodies or legislature.
When a proposal is being voted on in the United States Senate, a Senator can
elect to stop the vote.
Election
and Composition of Senate
The United States Constitution details the
election process and the composition of the Upper House of Congress: the United
States Senate. The Constitution originally provided for Senators to be elected
by the State legislatures. However, this would later be changed to allow for
Senators to be elected by popular vote with the implementation of the Seventeenth Amendment.
The Senate
would be comprised of two representatives from each State. Unlike the House of
Representatives, the two Senate seats delegated to the states were contingent
upon population numbers or apportionment. Furthermore, Senators serve six year
terms, as opposed to the House’s imposed two year term for its members.
Elections for the Senate are set to also coincide with those of the House of
Representatives. They are held on the first Tuesday of November on
even-numbered years.
Most states
will typically hold primary elections for the Republican and Democratic
parties, with general elections to follow afterward. Independent parties and
their access to the ballot will be determined by the State and will vary from
state to state.
Classification, Qualification, and Filling of Vacancies
for Senators
The United States Senate has specific
qualification requirements in order to become a member of the Chamber. Article
I, Section 3 of the United States Constitution provides for three general
requirements. Each senator must be at least thirty years of age and a citizen
of the United States for at least nine years prior to becoming a candidate. The
Senate candidate must also be a resident of the State that he/she seeks to
represent.
Generally
speaking, the House of Representatives has the same kind of qualification
requirements, though the Senate does provide for slightly higher qualifications
in terms of age and length of citizenship. Once elected, a Senator is to serve
a term of six years. However, the terms are staggered for the purpose of having
one-third of the Senate up for election every two years. Therefore, a
classification system was implemented during the First Congress so that the
one-third of the Senate could be replaced.
In general
terms, when a Senator is elected into the Chamber, he/she will be placed in
Class III, thus being the third class to be replaced in upcoming elections. The
Constitution also provides for a process to fill vacancies in the Senate.
Through the Seventeenth Amendment, governors are allowed to appoint replacements
to vacant seats in the Senate until a special election can take place to
declare a permanent replacement. However, a special election may be postponed
until the next Election Day, in which case the vacancy will remain until that
date.
Vice
President’s Role as Senate President
The Vice President of the United States is also
charged with undertaking the role as the ex officio President of the Senate. In
technical terms, the Vice President is the presiding officer of the Senate, but
it is the party leaders that actually have the power and authority in the
Chamber. The role of the Vice President as the Senate President has been, in
more modern applications, a ceremonial appointment.
The Senate
President does not have any real power, except in the case of a tie in a voting
decision, in which he may cast the tie-breaking vote. The Senate President used
to preside over the Senate’s debates, but very few have undertaken that duty
since the 1950s. The Senate also allows for a president pro tempore to be
elected and act as the presiding officer in the case that the Vice President is
absent. By comparison, the Speaker of the House has far more power as presiding
officer of the House of Representatives than the Senate President does as
presiding officer of the Senate.
Other Officers
The United States Senate employs the use of other
officers that are not members to the Senate to provide for specific duties and
responsibilities. Because the Senate has various and extensive legislative
responsibilities, other officers are established in order to help with the
overall functioning of the Chamber. The Secretary of the Senate is the chief
administrative officer and maintains the records for the Senate as well as
disburses salaries.
An Assistant
Secretary of the Senate is appointed to help the Secretary with administrative
duties. Another non-member officer is the Sergeant of Arms, who is responsible
for the Senate’s law enforcement. Even though these non-member officers of the
Senate are not granted powers or authority over legislative duties such as
Senators, they still play a crucial role in the Senate’s daily proceedings and
help the Senate function according to its purpose.
Impeachments
The United States Congress is given the exclusive
power of impeachment by the United States Government. Being a bicameral
legislature, it is not surprising that the impeachment process is two-fold and
each is delegated to both chambers: the Senate and the House of
Representatives. The House has the sole power of impeaching Federal officials.
However, the responsibility of bringing those accused Government officials to
trial is granted to the Senate.
An impeachment
trial proceeding occurs in the similar fashion that all criminal trial
proceedings occur. Both involved parties have the right to cross-examination of
witnesses and evidence, as well as the right to call witnesses to the stand to
support their case. In order for a conviction by the Senate for impeachment
charges to be implemented, the Chamber must cast a vote with a two-thirds
majority. If the Senate finds the accused official guilty, he is immediately
removed from office and may face further criminal charges as allowed by
law.
Minority Leader
The United States Senate is comprised mostly of
the Republican and Democratic parties. However, one party will always hold the
majority of members or seats in the Chamber. Both the majority and minority
parties will elect a leader of the party for the Senate. The political party
that holds the minority in the Senate will elect a Minority Leader. The
Minority Leader acts as the chief spokesperson for its respective party and is
responsible for managing and scheduling the legislative business of their
party. Furthermore, the Minority Leader also sets the agenda for his/her
respective party and is in charge of collaborating with the Majority Leader to
make his/her agenda known. In comparison to the Majority Leader, the Minority
Leader’s position in terms of authority and power is very much superseded by
Majority Leader, for that position tends to be the most powerful in the
Senate.
Majority Leader
Even though there is a presiding officer in the
Senate with the Vice President acting as Senate President, it is often
recognized that the Majority Leader has the most power and authority in the
Senate. Because the position of Senate President has become more of a
ceremonial appointment, it is in practice that the Majority Leader actually
manages the Senate.
The Majority
Leader is elected by the Majority Party in the Senate and acts as the chief
representative for his/her party. In situations where the Majority Party in the
Senate is not the same as in the House of Representatives, the Majority Leader
can act as the main representative of his/her party for all of Congress. The
Majority Leader tends to be the second-most senior member of his/her respective
party in the case that the floor leader becomes the presiding officer.
Otherwise, the Majority Leader will become the floor leader of the
Senate.
Salary and Benefits
The salary of all Congress members is actually
devised by Congress itself. However, the Seventeenth Amendment provides for the
restriction of salary changes being limited to every time a new Congress is to
meet. Therefore, this prevents new members of Congress from raising their own
salaries upon entering the position. However, the salary for Senate members, as
well as those in the House of Representatives, is the same. The only
discrepancy occurs in positions such as Majority and Minority Leaders and the
Speaker of the House in the House of Representatives.
Originally,
the Founding Fathers debated whether or not those undertaking positions of
service to the Government should be compensated for their positions. It would
be debated, but elected Government officials would be granted a salary. Much
has changed in terms of salary numbers for members of Congress, and they make a
fair living from their positions. Furthermore, they are also granted Federal
employee health and pension benefits allowing Senators to have a comfortable
living.
Seniority
In the United States Senate, there is a system of
seniority in place that allows for certain benefits and perks for members who
have served for a long period of time in their Congressional offices. The
practice of seniority is not one that is granted in the Constitution, but it
also does not entail any particular extension of authority or power to more
senior members.
Generally
speaking, seniority acts as a basis for recognition for those that have served
the Senate for an extended period of time. Senior Senators will typically be
given priority when committee appointments are to be made, giving them the
choice of where they would like to be. The Seniority system in the Senate is
based upon several factors that help determine where Senators rank. Time served
being the highest factor and most considered, other factors may take precedence
when Senators have served the same amount of time in their positions, thus
providing for the appropriate rank.
Procedures
The United States Senate implements what are known
as the Standing Rules of the Senate for all its procedures. These rules are
constructed and drafted by the Senate itself and create a regimented process
that rules procedures such as the daily occurrences in the Senate to the
passing of legislation and bills.
The procedures
of the Senate are not all based on the Standing Rules, but also on rules of
precedent and tradition. Sometimes, the Senate will choose to waive some of the
implemented rules before convening. This may only occur if the Senate can reach
a unanimous consent on the waiving of a rule or set of rules.
The Procedures
and rules prove to be important in the conducting of the debates on the Senate
floor, which are structured around a general sentiment of respect and civility.
This provides for a smoother operation of the Senate procedures without having
members getting out of hand in the case of disputes or disagreements over
certain matters.
