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In 1937, the rule giving majority leader right of first recognition was created. With the addition of this rule, the Senate majority leader enjoyed far greater control over the agenda of which bills to be considered on the floor. During Lyndon B. Johnson's tenure as Senate leader, the leader gained new powers over committee assignments. [6]
The constitutionally-defined Senate leadership roles are the Vice President of the United States, who serves as President of the Senate, and the President pro tempore, traditionally the seniormost member of the majority, who theoretically presides in the absence of the Vice President. [2]
However, in reality, the vice president seldom enters the Senate, let alone directly presides over the chamber, unless a tied vote is expected, and the president pro tempore has become a ceremonial role deprived of any leadership ability. Thus, the majority leader is seen as the de facto leader of the Senate, especially in modern times, and ...
Those elections resulted in a Republican majority in the Senate, meaning the winner of the leadership election would become Senate majority leader. [3] The Senate majority leader serves as the chief representative of their party in the Senate, and is considered the most powerful member of the Senate. The Senate's executive and legislative ...
Senate Majority Leader Chair of the Senate Democratic Caucus: Chuck Schumer: NY: January 20, 2021 Party leader since January 3, 2017: Senate Majority Whip: Dick Durbin: IL: January 20, 2021 Party whip since January 3, 2005: Chair of the Senate Democratic Policy and Communications Committee: Debbie Stabenow: MI: January 3, 2017
Each party elects Senate party leaders. Floor leaders act as the party chief spokesmen. The Senate majority leader is responsible for controlling the agenda of the chamber by scheduling debates and votes. Each party elects an assistant leader (whip), who works to ensure that his party's senators vote as the party leadership desires.
McConnell has been the leader of the Senate Republican Conference since 2007, including as majority leader from 2015 to 2021, making him the longest-serving Senate party leader in U.S. history. McConnell holds conservative political positions, although he was known as a pragmatist and a moderate Republican early in his political career.
In December 2006, during Frist's final month as Senate Majority Leader, Congress passed the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), as a part of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, [42] to strengthen BioShield by creating a dedicated agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services focused on the ...