United States Senate: Difference between revisions

{{short description|Upper house of the United States Congress}}

 

 

{{coord|38|53|26|N|77|0|32|W|region:US_type:landmark | display=title}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2016}}

| background_color = {{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}

| name           = United States Senate

| legislature   = [[117th United States Congress]]

| coa_pic       = Seal of the United States Senate.svg

| coa_caption   = [[Seal of the United States Senate|Seal of the U.S. Senate]]

| logo_pic       = Flag of the United States Senate.svg{{!}}border

| logo_caption   = Flag of the U.S. Senate

| logo_alt       = Flag of the United States Senate

| house_type     = Upper house  

| body           = United States Congress

| term_limits   = None

| new_session   = {{start date|2021|1|3}}

| leader2_type  = [[Vice President of the United States|President of the Senate]]

| leader2        = [[Kamala Harris]]

| party2        = ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])

| election2      = <small>[[Inauguration of Joe Biden|January 20, 2021]]</small>

| leader3_type  = [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|President pro tempore]]

| leader3        = [[Patrick Leahy]]

| party3        = ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])

| election3      = <small>January 20, 2021 </small>

| leader4_type   = [[Party leaders of the United States Senate|Majority Leader]]

| leader4       = [[Chuck Schumer]]

| party4         = ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])

| election4     = <small>January 20, 2021 </small>

| leader5_type   = [[Party leaders of the United States Senate|Minority Leader]]

| leader5       = [[Mitch McConnell]]

| party5         = ([[Republican Party (United States)|R]])

| election5     = <small>January 20, 2021 </small>

| leader6_type   = [[Party leaders of the United States Senate|Majority Whip]]

| leader6       = [[Dick Durbin]]

| party6         = ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])

| election6     = <small>January 20, 2021 </small>

| leader7_type   = [[Party leaders of the United States Senate|Minority Whip]]

| leader7       = [[John Thune]]

| party7         = ([[Republican Party (United States)|R]])

| election7     = <small>January 20, 2021 </small>

| members       = 100<br />51 (or 50 plus the [[Vice President of the United States|Vice President]]) for a majority

| structure1     = 117th United States Senate.svg

| structure1_res = 250px

| political_groups1 =

'''Majority (50)'''{{efn|name=tie|Democrats are in the majority due to the tiebreaking power of Democratic [[Vice President of the United States|Vice President]] [[Kamala Harris]], who serves [[Ex officio member|''ex officio'']] as the president of the Senate.}}

* {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Democratic Party (US)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] (48)}}

* {{nowrap|{{Color box|#9999ff|border=darkgray}} [[Independent politician|Independent]] (2)}}{{efn|name=King|The independent senators, [[Angus King]] of Maine and [[Bernie Sanders]] of Vermont, [[Senate Democratic Caucus|caucus]] with the Democrats.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/itsallpolitics/2012/11/14/165149633/maine-independent-angus-king-to-caucus-with-senate-democrats|title=Maine Independent Angus King To Caucus With Senate Democrats|website=[[Politico]]|date=November 14, 2012|access-date=November 28, 2020|quote=Angus King of Maine, who cruised to victory last week running as an independent, said Wednesday that he will caucus with Senate Democrats. [...] The Senate's other independent, Bernie Sanders of Vermont, also caucuses with the Democrats.}} </ref>}}

'''Minority (50)'''

* {{nowrap|{{Color box|{{party color|Republican Party (US)}}|border=darkgray}} [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] (50)}}

<!--'''Vacant (__)'''

| term_length   = 6 years

| voting_system1 = [[Plurality voting]] in 46 states{{efn|[[Alaska]] (for its primary elections only), [[California]], and [[Washington (state)|Washington]] additionally utilize a [[nonpartisan blanket primary]], and [[Louisiana]] uses a [[Louisiana primary]], for their respective [[primary elections]].}}<br>{{collapsible list

|titlestyle=font-weight:normal;background:transparent;text-align:left

|title=Varies in 4 states

|bullets = yes

|[[Elections in Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] & [[Elections in Mississippi|Mississippi]]: {{nowrap|[[Two-round system]]}}

| last_election1 = [[2020 United States Senate elections|November 3, 2020]]{{efn|name=GA|Also the [[2020–21 United States Senate election in Georgia|Georgia runoff election]] and the [[2020–21 United States Senate special election in Georgia|Georgia special runoff election]] held on January 5, 2021.}} {{small|(35 seats)}}

| next_election1 = [[2022 United States Senate elections|November 8, 2022]] {{small|(35 seats)}}

| session_room   = Senatefloor.jpg

| meeting_place = {{br separated entries|[[United States Senate Chamber|Senate Chamber]]|[[United States Capitol]]|[[Washington, D.C.]]|United States}}

|constitution=[[United States Constitution]]

| website       = {{URL|https://www.senate.gov|senate.gov}}

| rules         = [[Standing Rules of the United States Senate]]

The composition and powers of the Senate are established by [[Article One of the United States Constitution]].<ref name="senate_a1_sec3">{{cite web | url=https://www.senate.gov/civics/constitution_item/constitution.htm#a1_sec3 | title=Constitution of the United States | publisher=Senate.gov | date=March 26, 2009 | access-date=October 4, 2010}}</ref> The Senate is composed of [[#Membership|senators]], each of whom represents a single [[U.S. state|state]] in its entirety. Each state is equally represented by two senators who serve [[Classes of United States senators|staggered terms of six years]]. There are currently 100 senators representing the 50 states. The [[Vice President of the United States|vice president of the United States]] serves as presiding officer and president of the Senate by [[Ex officio member|virtue of that office]], and has a vote only if the senators are equally divided. In the vice president's absence, the [[President Pro Tempore of the United States Senate|president pro tempore]], who is traditionally the senior member of the party holding a majority of seats, presides over the Senate.

 

As the upper chamber of Congress, the Senate has several powers of [[advice and consent]] which are unique to it. These include the approval of [[Treaty|treaties]], and the confirmation of [[Cabinet of the United States|Cabinet secretaries]], [[United States federal judge|federal judges]] (including [[List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States|Federal Supreme Court justices]]), [[Flag officer#United States|flag officers]], regulatory officials, [[Ambassadors of the United States|ambassadors]], [[United States federal executive departments|other federal executive officials]] and [[Uniformed services of the United States|federal uniformed officers]]. If no candidate receives a majority of [[Electoral College (United States)|electors]] for [[Vice President of the United States|vice president]], the duty falls to the Senate to elect one of the top two recipients of electors for that office. The Senate conducts trials of those [[Impeachment in the United States|impeached]] by the House.

The Senate is widely considered both a more deliberative<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Amar|first=Vik D.|date=1988-01-01|title=The Senate and the Constitution|jstor=796343|journal=The Yale Law Journal|volume=97|issue=6|pages=1111–1130|doi=10.2307/796343|s2cid=53702587|url=https://semanticscholar.org/paper/aea4cf2dbfdfb1457ec0d9ff1860232ea02afbc9}}</ref> and more prestigious<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Stewart|first1=Charles|last2=Reynolds|first2=Mark|date=1990-01-01|title=Television Markets and U.S. Senate Elections|jstor=439894|journal=Legislative Studies Quarterly|volume=15|issue=4|pages=495–523|doi=10.2307/439894}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/09/12/us/in-fight-for-control-of-congress-tough-skirmishes-within-parties.html?pagewanted=all | title=In Fight for Control of Congress, Tough Skirmishes Within Parties | author=Richard L. Berke | date=September 12, 1999 | work=The New York Times}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | url=http://repository.upenn.edu/curej/93/ | title=The Rapid Sequence of Events Forcing the Senate's Hand: A Reappraisal of the Seventeenth Amendment, 1890–1913 | journal=Curej – College Undergraduate Research Electronic Journal | author=Joseph S. Friedman | date=March 30, 2009 }}</ref> body than the House of Representatives due to its longer terms, smaller size, and statewide constituencies, which historically led to a more collegial and less [[Partisan (political)|partisan]] atmosphere.<ref>{{Cite journal | title=Agreeing to Disagree: Agenda Content and Senate Partisanship, 198 | journal=Legislative Studies Quarterly | volume=33 | issue=2 | pages=199–222 | doi=10.3162/036298008784311000 | date=June 16, 2006 | last1=Lee | first1=Frances E. }}</ref>

From 1789 to 1913, senators were appointed by legislatures of the states they represented. They are now elected by popular vote following the ratification of the [[Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Seventeenth Amendment]] in 1913. In the early 1920s, the practice of majority and minority parties electing [[Party leaders of the United States Senate|their floor leaders]] began. The Senate's legislative and executive business is managed and scheduled by the Senate majority leader.

 

The drafters of the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]] created a bicameral Congress primarily as a compromise between those who felt that each state, since it was sovereign, should be equally represented, and those who felt the legislature must directly represent the people, as the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] did in [[Kingdom of Great Britain|Great Britain]]. This idea of having one chamber represent people equally, while the other gives equal representation to states regardless of population, was known as the [[Connecticut Compromise]]. There was also a desire to have two Houses that could act as an internal check on each other. One was intended to be a "People's House" directly elected by the people, and with short terms obliging the representatives to remain close to their constituents. The other was intended to represent the states to such extent as they retained their sovereignty except for the powers expressly delegated to the national government. The Constitution provides that the approval of both chambers is necessary for the passage of legislation.<ref name = art1sec1/>

First convened in 1789, the Senate of the United States was formed on the example of the ancient [[Roman Senate]]. The name is derived from the ''senatus'', [[Latin]] for ''council of elders'' (from ''senex'' meaning ''old man'' in Latin).<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/senate | title=Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary: ''senate'' | access-date=March 22, 2012}}</ref>

[[James Madison]] made the following comment about the Senate:

{{blockquote|sign=|source=Notes of the Secret Debates of the Federal Convention of 1787|In England, at this day, if elections were open to all classes of people, the property of landed proprietors would be insecure. An agrarian law would soon take place. If these observations remain just, our government ought to secure the permanent interests of the country against innovation. Landholders ought to have a share in the government, to support these invaluable interests, and to balance and check the other. They ought to be so constituted as to protect the minority of the opulent against the majority. The Senate, therefore, ought to be this body; and to answer these purposes, they ought to have permanency and stability.<ref>{{cite book | url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/yates.asp | title=Notes of the Secret Debates of the Federal Convention of 1787 | author=Robert Yates | access-date=2017-03-17}}</ref>}}

[[Article Five of the United States Constitution|Article Five of the Constitution]] stipulates that no constitutional amendment may be created to deprive a state of its [[equal suffrage]] in the Senate without that state's consent. The [[Washington, D.C.|District of Columbia]] and all other [[Territories of the United States|territories]] are not entitled to representation or allowed to vote in either house of Congress. They have official [[Non-voting members of the United States House of Representatives|non-voting delegates]] in the House of Representatives, but none in the Senate. The District of Columbia and Puerto Rico each additionally elect two "[[Shadow congressperson|shadow senators]]", but they are officials of their respective local governments and not members of the U.S. Senate.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Non-voting_members_of_Congress | title=Non-voting members of Congress | access-date=March 22, 2011 |url-status = dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101123015800/http://www.opencongress.org/wiki/Non-voting_members_of_Congress | archive-date=November 23, 2010 | df=mdy-all }}</ref> The United States has had 50 states since 1959,<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/hawaii-becomes-50th-state | title=Hawaii becomes 50th state | access-date=March 22, 2011|website = History.com}}</ref> thus the Senate has had 100 senators since 1959.<ref name="art1sec1">{{cite web | url=http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html#A1Sec1 | title=U.S. Constitution: ''Article 1, Section 1'' | access-date=March 22, 2012}}</ref>

 

[[File:Combined--Control of the U.S. House of Representatives - Control of the U.S. Senate.png|thumb|right|400px|Graph showing historical party control of the U.S. Senate, House and Presidency since 1855<ref name="uspolitics.about">{{cite web |url=http://uspolitics.about.com/od/usgovernment/l/bl_party_division_2.htm |title=Party In Power – Congress and Presidency – A Visual Guide To The Balance of Power In Congress, 1945–2008 |publisher=Uspolitics.about.com |access-date=September 17, 2012 |url-status = dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121101145605/http://uspolitics.about.com/od/usgovernment/l/bl_party_division_2.htm |archive-date=November 1, 2012 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>]]

 

[[File:Us senate 117th congress.svg|thumb|400x400px|Members of the United States Senate for the 117th Congress]]

 

<blockquote>A senator must be thirty years of age at least; as a representative must be twenty-five. And the former must have been a citizen nine years; as seven years are required for the latter. The propriety of these distinctions is explained by the nature of the senatorial trust, which, requiring greater extent of information and stability of character, requires at the same time that the senator should have reached a period of life most likely to supply these advantages; and which, participating immediately in transactions with foreign nations, ought to be exercised by none who are not thoroughly weaned from the prepossessions and habits incident to foreign birth and education. The term of nine years appears to be a prudent mediocrity between a total exclusion of adopted citizens, whose merits and talents may claim a share in the public confidence, and an indiscriminate and hasty admission of them, which might create a channel for foreign influence on the national councils.<ref name="fed62">[https://guides.loc.gov/federalist-papers/text-61-70 Federalist Papers, No. 62], Library of Congress.</ref></blockquote>

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>[https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Youngest_Senator.htm 1801–1850, November 16, 1818: Youngest Senator.] United States Senate. Retrieved November 17, 2007.</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. In November 1972, [[Joe Biden]] was elected to the Senate at the age of 29, but he reached his 30th birthday before the swearing-in ceremony for incoming senators in January 1973.

Originally, senators were selected by the [[State legislature (United States)|state legislatures]], not by [[Universal suffrage|popular elections]]. By the early years of the 20th century, the legislatures of as many as 29 states had provided for popular election of senators by referendums.<ref name="direct">{{cite web | url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Direct_Election_Senators.htm | title=Direct Election of Senators | publisher=U.S. Senate official website|access-date=23 April 2019}}</ref> Popular election to the Senate was standardized nationally in 1913 by the ratification of the [[Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Seventeenth Amendment]].

Senators serve terms of six years each; the terms are staggered so that approximately one-third of the seats are up for election every two years. This was achieved by dividing the senators of the [[1st United States Congress|1st Congress]] into thirds (called [[Classes of United States senators|classes]]), where the terms of one-third expired after two years, the terms of another third expired after four, and the terms of the last third expired after six years. This arrangement was also followed after the admission of new states into the union. The staggering of terms has been arranged such that both seats from a given state are not contested in the same general election, except when a vacancy is being filled. Current senators whose six-year terms are set to expire on January 3, 2023, belong to [[Class III Senator|Class III]]. There is no constitutional [[Term limits in the United States|limit to the number of terms]] a senator may serve.

The Constitution set the date for Congress to convene — Article 1, Section 4, Clause 2, originally set that date for the third day of December. The [[Twentieth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Twentieth Amendment]], however, changed the opening date for sessions to noon on the third day of January, unless they shall by law appoint a different day. The Twentieth Amendment also states that the Congress shall assemble at least once every year, and allows the Congress to determine its convening and adjournment dates and other dates and schedules as it desires. Article 1, Section 3, provides that the president has the power to convene Congress on extraordinary occasions at his discretion.<ref>[https://www.senate.gov/reference/Sessions/sessionDates.htm Dates of Sessions of the Congress.] ''United States Senate''. Retrieved June 17, 2020.</ref>

However, in five states, different methods are used. In [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]], a runoff between the top two candidates occurs if the plurality winner in the general election does not also win a majority. In [[California]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], and [[Louisiana]], a [[nonpartisan blanket primary]] (also known as a "jungle primary" or "top-two primary") is held in which all candidates participate in a single primary regardless of party affiliation and the top two candidates in terms of votes received at the primary election advance to the general election, where the winner is the candidate with the greater number of votes. In Louisiana, the [[Louisiana primary|blanket primary is considered the general election]] and candidates receiving a majority of the votes is declared the winner, skipping a run-off. In [[Maine]] and [[Alaska]], [[Instant-runoff voting|ranked-choice voting]] is used to nominate and elect candidates for federal offices, including the Senate.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Brooks |first1=James |title=Election audit confirms win for Ballot Measure 2 and Alaska's new ranked-choice voting system |url=https://www.adn.com/politics/2020/12/14/election-audit-confirms-win-for-ballot-measure-2-and-alaskas-new-ranked-choice-voting-system/ |website=Anchorage Daily News |access-date=10 January 2021 |date=December 14, 2020}}</ref>

The [[Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Seventeenth Amendment]] requires that vacancies in the Senate be filled by special election. Whenever a senator must be appointed or elected, the [[secretary of the Senate]] mails one of three forms to the state's governor to inform them of the proper wording to certify the appointment of a new senator.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Term of A Senator – When Does It Begin and End? – Senate 98-29 |url= https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/termofasenator.pdf |website=United States Senate|publisher=United States Printing Office|access-date= November 13, 2015|pages=14–15}}</ref> If a special election for one seat happens to coincide with a general election for the state's other seat, each seat is contested separately. A senator elected in a special election takes office as soon as possible after the election and serves until the original six-year term expires (i.e. not for a full-term).

The manner by which the Seventeenth Amendment is enacted varies among the states. A 2018 report breaks this down into the following three broad categories (specific procedures vary among the states):<ref name="CRS_R44781">{{cite web |url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44781.pdf |title=U.S. Senate Vacancies: Contemporary Developments and Perspectives |last1=Neale |first1=Thomas H. |date=April 12, 2018 |website=fas.org |publisher=Congressional Research Service |access-date=October 13, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180605230617/https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R44781.pdf |archive-date=June 5, 2018 |url-status = live}} '''NOTE:''' wherever present, references to page numbers in superscripts refer to the electronic (.pdf) pagination, not as found printed on the bottom margin of displayed pages.</ref>

* Five states – North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin – do not empower their governors to make temporary appointments, relying exclusively on the required special election provision in the Seventeenth Amendment.<ref name="CRS_R44781" />{{rp|7–8}}

* Nine states – Alabama, Alaska, Connecticut, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Texas, Vermont, and Washington – provide for gubernatorial appointments, but also require a special election on an accelerated schedule.<ref name="CRS_R44781" />{{rp|10–11}}

* The remaining thirty-six states provide for gubernatorial appointments, "with the appointed senator serving the balance of the term or until the next statewide general election".<ref name="CRS_R44781" />{{rp|8–9}}

In six states within the final category above – Arizona, Hawaii, Maryland, North Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming – the governor must appoint someone of the same political party as the previous incumbent.<ref name="CRS_R44781" />{{rp|9}}

In September 2009, [[Massachusetts]] changed its law to enable the governor to appoint a temporary replacement for the late senator Edward Kennedy until the special election in January 2010.<ref name="MA Law 54-140">{{cite web | url = http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/54-140.htm | publisher = Massachusetts Great and General Court | title = Temporary Appointment of US Senator | first = Robert A. | last = DeLeo | date = September 17, 2009 }}</ref><ref name="Temporary Appointment Not a Candidate">{{cite web | url = https://malegislature.gov/Document/Download?entityTypeName=Journal&generalCourtNumber=186&branchName=2&entityNumber=09-22-09 | publisher = Massachusetts Great and General Court | title = Temporary Appointment of US Senator Shall not be a candidate in special election | first = Robert A. | last = DeLeo | date = September 17, 2009 }}</ref>

In 2004, [[Alaska]] enacted legislation and a separate ballot referendum that took effect on the same day, but that conflicted with each other. The effect of the ballot-approved law is to withhold from the governor authority to appoint a senator.<ref name="Alaska appointments">{{cite web | url=http://www.adn.com/politics/story/569836.html | title=Stevens could keep seat in Senate | date=October 28, 2009 | work=Anchorage Daily News |url-status = dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090528015846/http://www.adn.com/politics/story/569836.html | archive-date=May 28, 2009 | df=mdy-all }}</ref> Because the 17th Amendment vests the power to grant that authority to the legislature&nbsp;– not the people or the state generally&nbsp;– it is unclear whether the ballot measure supplants the legislature's statute granting that authority.<ref name="Alaska appointments" /> As a result, it is uncertain whether an Alaska governor may appoint an interim senator to serve until a special election is held to fill the vacancy.

The Constitution requires that senators take an oath or [[Affirmation in law|affirmation]] to support the Constitution.<ref>[[Article Six of the United States Constitution|United States Constitution, Article VI]]</ref> Congress has prescribed the following oath for all federal officials (except the President), including senators: {{blockquote|I, ___ ___, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.<ref>See: {{USC|5|3331}}; see also: [https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Oath_Office.htm U.S. Senate Oath of Office]</ref>}}

The annual [[Salaries of United States senators|salary]] of each senator, since 2009, is $174,000;<ref name="salaries">[https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/senate_salaries.htm Salaries.] United States Senate. Retrieved October 2, 2013.</ref> the president pro tempore and party leaders receive $193,400.<ref name="salaries"/><ref name="usgovinfo"/> In June 2003, at least 40 senators were millionaires;<ref>{{cite news | author=Sean Loughlin and Robert Yoon | url=http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/06/13/senators.finances | title=Millionaires populate U.S. Senate | publisher= CNN | date= June 13, 2003| access-date=June 19, 2006}}</ref> in 2018, over 50 senators were millionaires.<ref>{{cite web |title=Wealth of Congress |url=https://www.rollcall.com/wealth-of-congress |website=Roll Call |access-date=8 November 2018}}</ref>

Along with earning salaries, senators receive retirement and health benefits that are identical to other federal employees, and are fully [[vesting|vested]] after five years of service.<ref name="usgovinfo">{{cite web | url=http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aa031200a.htm | title=US Congress Salaries and Benefits | publisher=Usgovinfo.about.com | access-date=October 2, 2013}}</ref> Senators are covered by the [[Federal Employees Retirement System]] (FERS) or [[Civil Service Retirement System]] (CSRS). FERS has been the Senate's retirement system since January 1, 1987, while CSRS applies only for those senators who were in the Senate from December 31, 1986, and prior. As it is for federal employees, congressional retirement is funded through taxes and the participants' contributions. Under FERS, senators contribute 1.3% of their salary into the FERS retirement plan and pay 6.2% of their salary in Social Security taxes. The amount of a senator's pension depends on the years of service and the average of the highest three years of their salary. The starting amount of a senator's retirement annuity may not exceed 80% of their final salary. In 2006, the average annual pension for retired senators and representatives under CSRS was $60,972, while those who retired under FERS, or in combination with CSRS, was $35,952.<ref name="usgovinfo"/>

Seniority is a factor in the selection of physical offices and in party caucuses' assignment of committees.<ref>{{cite web | last=Baker | first=Richard A. | title=Traditions of the United States Senate | url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/Traditions.pdf | work=Page 4}}</ref>

At one end of the chamber of the Senate is a [[dais]] from which the [[Presiding Officer of the United States Senate|presiding officer]] presides. The lower tier of the dais is used by clerks and other officials. One hundred desks are arranged in the chamber in a [[semicircle|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 (United States)|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 | publisher=Senate Chamber Desks | access-date=July 11, 2012}}</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 |url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/art/special/Desks/overview.cfm |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Overview |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.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.senate.gov/art-artifacts/decorative-art/furniture/senate-chamber-desks/desk-occupants.htm |title=Senate Chamber Desks – Desk Occupants |website=United States Senate}}</ref>

Under the Constitution, the [[Vice President of the United States|vice president]] serves as president of the Senate. They may vote in the Senate (''[[ex officio]]'', for they are not an elected member of the Senate) in the case of a tie, but are not required to.<ref>{{cite web|title=Glossary Term: vice president|url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/vice_president.htm|website=senate.gov|publisher=United States Senate|access-date=November 10, 2016}}</ref> For much of the nation's history the task of presiding over Senate sessions was one of the vice president's principal duties (the other being to receive from the states the tally of electoral ballots cast for president and vice president and to open the certificates "in the Presence of the Senate and House of Representatives", so that the total votes could be counted). Since the 1950s, vice presidents have presided over few Senate debates. Instead, they have usually presided only on ceremonial occasions, such as swearing in new senators, joint sessions, or at times to announce the result of significant legislation or nomination, or when a tie vote on an important issue is anticipated.

The Constitution authorizes the Senate to elect a [[President pro tempore of the United States Senate|president pro tempore]] ([[Latin]] for "president for a time"), who presides over the chamber in the vice president's absence and is, by custom, the senator of the majority party with the longest record of continuous service.<ref>{{cite web|title=Glossary Term: president pro tempore|url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/president_pro_tempore.htm|website=senate.gov|publisher=United States Senate|access-date=November 10, 2016}}</ref> Like the vice president, the president pro tempore does not normally preside over the Senate, but typically delegates the responsibility of presiding to a majority-party senator who presides over the Senate, usually in blocks of one hour on a rotating basis. Frequently, freshmen senators (newly elected members) are asked to preside so that they may become accustomed to the rules and procedures of the body. It is said that, "in practice they are usually mere mouthpieces for [[Parliamentarian of the United States Senate|the Senate’s parliamentarian]], who whispers what they should do".<ref>{{Cite news|title=Presiding Loses Its Prestige in Senate|url=http://www.rollcall.com/news/presiding-loses-its-prestige-in-senate-207942-1.html|publisher=rollcall.com|access-date=February 8, 2017|newspaper=Roll Call|date=August 2011|last1=Mershon|first1=Erin}}</ref>

Debate, like most other matters governing the internal functioning of the Senate, is governed by internal rules adopted by the Senate. During a debate, senators may only speak if called upon by the presiding officer, but the presiding officer is required to recognize the first senator who rises to speak. Thus, the presiding officer has little control over the course of the debate. Customarily, the majority leader and minority leader are accorded priority during debates even if another senator rises first. All speeches must be addressed to the presiding officer, who is addressed as "Mr. President" or "Madam President", and not to another member; other Members must be referred to in the third person. In most cases, senators do not refer to each other by name, but by state or position, using forms such as "the senior senator from Virginia", "the gentleman from California", or "my distinguished friend the chairman of the Judiciary Committee". Senators address the Senate standing next to their desks.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=juX5w6oLgcwC&dq=%22senators+address+each+other%22&q=%22address+the+chair#v=snippet&q=%22address%20the%20chair&f=false Martin B. Gold, ''Senate Procedure and Practice'', p.39]: ''Every member, when he speaks, shall address the chair, standing in his place, and when he has finished, shall sit down.''</ref>

Within the United States, the Senate is sometimes referred to as "world's greatest deliberative body".<ref>{{cite magazine| url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,978823,00.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090811051312/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,978823,00.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=August 11, 2009 | magazine=Time | title=The World's Greatest Deliberative Body | date=July 5, 1993}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| url=http://voices.washingtonpost.com/ezra-klein/2009/11/worlds_greatest_deliberative_b.html | newspaper=The Washington Post | title=World's greatest deliberative body watch}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/democracyinamerica/2010/08/senate_reform |title=Senate reform: Lazing on a Senate afternoon |newspaper=The Economist |access-date=October 4, 2010}}</ref>

The [[filibuster]] is a tactic used to defeat bills and motions by prolonging debate indefinitely. A filibuster may entail long speeches, dilatory motions, and an extensive series of proposed amendments. The Senate may end a filibuster by invoking [[cloture]]. In most cases, cloture requires the support of three-fifths of the Senate; however, if the matter before the Senate involves changing the rules of the body&nbsp;– this includes amending provisions regarding the filibuster&nbsp;– a two-thirds majority is required. In current practice, the threat of filibuster is more important than its use; almost any motion that does not have the support of three-fifths of the Senate effectively fails. This means that 41 senators can make a filibuster happen. Historically, cloture has rarely been invoked because bipartisan support is usually necessary to obtain the required [[supermajority]], so a bill that already has bipartisan support is rarely subject to threats of filibuster. However, motions for cloture have increased significantly in recent years.

If the Senate invokes cloture, the debate does not necessarily end immediately; instead, it is limited to up to 30 additional hours unless increased by another three-fifths vote. The longest filibuster speech in the Senate's history was delivered by [[Strom Thurmond]] (D-SC), who spoke for over 24 hours in an unsuccessful attempt to block the passage of the [[Civil Rights Act of 1957]].<ref>Quinton, Jeff. "[https://web.archive.org/web/20060614024620/http://www.jquinton.com/archives/000171.html Thurmond's Filibuster]". ''Backcountry Conservative''. July 27, 2003. Retrieved June 19, 2006.</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 | url=https://www.senate.gov/general/Features/votes.htm | title=Yea or Nay? Voting in the Senate | publisher=Senate.gov | access-date=April 11, 2011}}</ref>

Filibustered bills require a three-fifths majority to overcome the cloture vote (which usually means 60 votes) and get to the normal vote where a simple majority (usually 51 votes) approves the bill. This has caused some news media to confuse 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 | url=http://www.niemanwatchdog.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=background.view&backgroundid=381 | title=How majority rule works in the U.S. Senate | publisher=Nieman Watchdog | date=July 31, 2009}}</ref>

On occasion, the Senate may go into what is called a secret or closed session. During a closed session, the chamber doors are closed, cameras are turned off, and the galleries are completely cleared of anyone not sworn to secrecy, not instructed in the rules of the closed session, or not essential to the session. Closed sessions are rare and usually held only when the Senate is discussing sensitive subject matter such as information critical to national security, private communications from the president, or deliberations during [[Impeachment in the United States|impeachment]] trials. A senator may call for and force a closed session if the motion is seconded by at least one other member, but an agreement usually occurs beforehand.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RS20145.pdf|title=Secret Sessions of Congress: A Brief Historical Overview|last=Amer|first=Mildred|date=March 27, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806041728/https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RS20145.pdf|archive-date=August 6, 2009}}</ref> If the Senate does not approve the release of a secret transcript, the transcript is stored in the Office of Senate Security and ultimately sent to the national archives. The proceedings remain sealed indefinitely until the Senate votes to remove the injunction of secrecy.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/98-718.pdf|title=Secret Sessions of the House and Senate|last=Amer|first=Mildred|date=March 27, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806041723/https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/98-718.pdf|archive-date=August 6, 2009}}</ref> In 1973, the House adopted a rule that all committee sessions should be open unless a majority on the committee voted for a closed session.

The Senate maintains a Senate Calendar and an Executive Calendar.<ref>"[https://www.senate.gov/pagelayout/legislative/d_three_sections_with_teasers/calendars.htm Calendars & Schedules]" via Senate.gov</ref> The former identifies bills and resolutions awaiting Senate floor actions. The latter identifies executive resolutions, treaties, and nominations reported out by Senate committee(s) and awaiting Senate floor action. Both are updated each day the Senate is in session.

Most committee work is performed by 16 standing committees, each of which has jurisdiction over a field such as [[finance]] or [[International relations|foreign relations]]. Each standing committee may consider, amend, and report bills that fall under its jurisdiction. Furthermore, each standing committee considers presidential nominations to offices related to its jurisdiction. (For instance, the [[United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary|Judiciary Committee]] considers nominees for judgeships, and the [[United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations|Foreign Relations Committee]] considers nominees for positions in the [[United States Department of State|Department of State]].) Committees may block nominees and impede bills from reaching the floor of the Senate. Standing committees also oversee the departments and [[Government agency#Government agencies in the United States|agencies]] of the executive branch. In discharging their duties, standing committees have the power to hold hearings and to [[subpoena]] witnesses and evidence.

Recent criticisms of the Senate's operations object to what the critics argue is obsolescence as a result of partisan paralysis and a preponderance of arcane rules.<ref>{{cite web | author=Mark Murray | url=http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/08/02/4801404-the-inefficient-senate | title=The inefficient Senate | publisher=Firstread.msnbc.msn.com | date=August 2, 2010 | access-date=October 4, 2010 |url-status = dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100810010230/http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/08/02/4801404-the-inefficient-senate | archive-date=August 10, 2010 | df=mdy-all }}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine | last=Packer | first=George | url=https://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2010/08/09/100809fa_fact_packer?currentPage=all#ixzz0vY0UxHu9 | title=Filibusters and arcane obstructions in the Senate | magazine=The New Yorker | date=January 7, 2009 | access-date=October 4, 2010}}</ref>

The [[Filibuster in the United States Senate|Senate filibuster]] is frequently debated. The Constitution specifies a simple majority threshold to pass legislation, and some critics feel the de facto three-fifths threshold for general legislation prevents beneficial laws from passing. (The [[nuclear option]] was exercised by both parties in the 2010s to eliminate the filibuster for confirmations.) Supporters generally consider the filibuster to be an important protection for the minority views and a check against the unfettered single-party rule when the same party holds the Presidency and a majority in both the House and Senate.

Though this was an intentional part of the [[Connecticut Compromise]], critics have described the fact that representation in the Senate is not proportional to the population as "anti-democratic" and "minority rule".<ref>[[How Democratic Is the American Constitution?]]</ref><ref>[[Sizing Up the Senate]]</ref> ''New York Times'' opinion columnist David Leonhardt points out<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/14/opinion/dc-puerto-rico-statehood-senate.html The Senate: Affirmative Action for White People]</ref> that because small states are disproportionately non-Hispanic European American, African Americans have 75% of their proportionate voting power in the Senate, and Hispanic Americans have just 55%. The approximately four million Americans that have no representation in the Senate (in the [[District of Columbia]] and [[U.S. territories]]) are heavily African and Hispanic American. Leonhardt and others advocate for admitting [[Statehood movement in the District of Columbia|Washington, D.C.]] and [[Statehood movement in Puerto Rico|Puerto Rico as states]] (both have more residents than the smallest existing states) to reduce this inequity.

Bills may be introduced in either chamber of Congress. However, the Constitution's [[Origination Clause]] provides that "All bills for raising Revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.senate.gov/civics/constitution_item/constitution.htm#a1_sec7 | title=Constitution of the United States | publisher=Senate.gov | access-date=January 1, 2012}}</ref> As a result, the Senate does not have the power to initiate bills imposing taxes. Furthermore, the House of Representatives holds that the Senate does not have the power to originate [[appropriation bill]]s, or bills authorizing the expenditure of federal funds.<ref name=Saturno>Saturno, James. "[https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL31399.pdf The Origination Clause of the U.S. Constitution: Interpretation and Enforcement]", CRS Report for Congress (Mar-15-2011).</ref><ref name=Wirls>Wirls, Daniel and Wirls, Stephen. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=ifzWY2ZrNBAC&pg=PA188 The Invention of the United States Senate]'', p. 188 (Taylor & Francis 2004).</ref><ref>[[Woodrow Wilson]] wrote that the Senate has extremely broad amendment authority with regard to appropriations bills, as distinguished from bills that levy taxes. See Wilson, Woodrow. ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=eWBJfdV_jv8C&lpg=PP1&dq=editions%3AXH62sjkuTc4C&pg=PA155#v=onepage&q=originate&f=false Congressional Government: A Study in American Politics]'', pp. 155–156 (Transaction Publishers 2002).</ref><ref>According to the [[Library of Congress]], the Constitution provides the origination requirement for revenue bills, whereas tradition provides the origination requirement for appropriation bills. See Sullivan, John. "[http://thomas.loc.gov/home/lawsmade.bysec/congress.html How Our Laws Are Made] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016045756/http://thomas.loc.gov/home/lawsmade.bysec/congress.html |date=October 16, 2015 }}", Library of Congress (accessed August 26, 2013).</ref> Historically, the Senate has disputed the interpretation advocated by the House. However, when the Senate originates an appropriations bill, the House simply refuses to consider it, thereby settling the dispute in practice. The constitutional provision barring the Senate from introducing revenue bills is based on the practice of the [[Parliament of the United Kingdom]], in which [[money bill]]s approved by Parliament have originated in the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] per [[Constitutional conventions of the United Kingdom|constitutional convention]].<ref name=Sargent>Sargent, Noel. "[http://www.tifis.org/oclause/Sargent.pdf Bills for Raising Revenue Under the Federal and State Constitutions]", ''[[Minnesota Law Review]]'', Vol. 4, p. 330 (1919).</ref>

The president can make [[List of positions filled by presidential appointment with Senate confirmation|certain appointments]] only with the [[advice and consent]] of the Senate. Officials whose appointments require the Senate's approval include members of the Cabinet, heads of most federal executive agencies, [[ambassador]]s, justices of the Supreme Court, and other federal judges. Under Article II, Section 2, of the Constitution, a large number of government appointments are subject to potential confirmation; however, Congress has passed legislation to authorize the appointment of many officials without the Senate's consent (usually, confirmation requirements are reserved for those officials with the most significant final decision-making authority). Typically, a nominee is the first subject to a hearing before a Senate committee. Thereafter, the nomination is considered by the full Senate. The majority of nominees are confirmed, but in a small number of cases each year, Senate committees purposely fail to act on a nomination to block it. In addition, the president sometimes withdraws nominations when they appear unlikely to be confirmed. Because of this, outright rejections of nominees on the Senate floor are infrequent (there have been only nine Cabinet nominees rejected outright in United States history).<ref>{{cite web |last1=King |first1=Elizabeth |title=This Is What Happened Last Time a Cabinet Nomination Was Rejected |url=https://time.com/4653593/cabinet-rejection-john-tower/ |website=time.com |publisher=Time USA, LLC |access-date=11 April 2020}}</ref>

The powers of the Senate concerning nominations are, however, subject to some constraints. For instance, the Constitution provides that the president may make an appointment during a [[Recess (motion)|congressional recess]] without the Senate's advice and consent. The [[recess appointment]] remains valid only temporarily; the office becomes vacant again at the end of the next congressional session. Nevertheless, presidents have frequently used recess appointments to circumvent the possibility that the Senate may reject the nominee. Furthermore, as the Supreme Court held in ''[[Myers v. United States]]'', although the Senate's advice and consent are required for the appointment of certain executive branch officials, it is not necessary for their removal.<ref>[https://www.senate.gov/reference/resources/pdf/RS21308.pdf Recess Appointments FAQ] (PDF). US Senate, Congressional Research Service. Retrieved November 20, 2007</ref><ref>Ritchie, ''Congress'' p. 178.</ref> [[Recess appointment]]s have faced a significant amount of resistance and in 1960, the U.S. Senate passed a legally non-binding resolution against recess appointments.{{citation needed|date=April 2020}}

[[File:US Senate Chamber c1873.jpg|thumb|right|[[U.S. Senate chamber]] c. 1873: two or three [[spittoon]]s are visible by desks]]

The Senate also has a role in ratifying treaties. The Constitution provides that the president may only "make Treaties, provided two-thirds of the senators present concur" in order to benefit from the Senate's advice and consent and give each state an equal vote in the process. However, not all international agreements are considered treaties under U.S. domestic law, even if they are considered treaties under international law. Congress has passed laws authorizing the president to conclude [[executive agreement]]s without action by the Senate. Similarly, the president may make [[congressional-executive agreement]]s with the approval of a simple majority in each House of Congress, rather than a two-thirds majority in the Senate. Neither executive agreements nor congressional-executive agreements are mentioned in the Constitution, leading some scholars such as [[Laurence Tribe]] and [[John Yoo]]<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/05/opinion/05bolton.html | work=The New York Times | title=Restore the Senate's Treaty Power | first1=John R. | last1=Bolton | date=January 5, 2009}}</ref> to suggest that they unconstitutionally circumvent the treaty-ratification process. However, courts have upheld the validity of such agreements.<ref>For an example, and a discussion of the literature, see [[Laurence Tribe]], "[https://www.jstor.org/stable/1341856 Taking Text and Structure Seriously: Reflections on Free-Form Method in Constitutional Interpretation]", ''Harvard Law Review'', Vol. 108, No. 6. (April 1995), pp. 1221–1303.</ref>

The House of Representatives has impeached sixteen officials, of whom seven were convicted (one resigned before the Senate could complete the trial).<ref>[https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Senate_Impeachment_Role.htm#4 Complete list of impeachment trials.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101202133604/http://senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/briefing/Senate_Impeachment_Role.htm |date=December 2, 2010 }} United States Senate. Retrieved November 20, 2007</ref> Only three presidents have been impeached: [[Andrew Johnson]] in 1868, [[Bill Clinton]] in 1998, and [[Donald Trump]] in 2019 and 2021. The trials of Johnson, Clinton and both Trump trials ended in acquittal; in Johnson's case, the Senate fell one vote short of the two-thirds majority required for conviction.

* {{cite book | last=Ritchie | first= Donald A. | author-link= Donald A. Ritchie | title= Press Gallery: Congress and the Washington Correspondents | publisher= Harvard University Press | year=1991}}

* {{cite book | last=Ritchie | first= Donald A. | author-link= Donald A. Ritchie | title= The Congress of the United States: A Student Companion | publisher= Oxford University Press | year= 2001 | edition=2nd}}

* {{cite book | last=Ritchie | first= Donald A. | author-link= Donald A. Ritchie | title= The U.S. Congress: A Very Short Introduction | publisher=Oxford University Press | year= 2010}}