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Who is the oldest senator?
At 89, Feinstein is the oldest sitting U.S. senator. In March 2021, Feinstein became the longest-serving U.S. senator from California, surpassing Hiram Johnson. Upon the death of Don Young, she became the oldest sitting member of Congress.
Who is Senate Republican leader?
Mitch McConnell is the United States Senate Republican Leader. He is the longest-serving Senate Republican Leader in American history, unanimously elected to lead the conference eight times since 2006. From 2015 to 2021, McConnell served as Senate Majority Leader.
What a filibuster means?
The Senate tradition of unlimited debate has allowed for the use of the filibuster, a loosely defined term for action designed to prolong debate and delay or prevent a vote on a bill, resolution, amendment, or other debatable question.
Which senators are Catholic?
Catholics (25)SenatorPartyReligionPatrick LeahyDemocraticCatholicBen Ray LujánDemocraticCatholicJoe ManchinDemocraticCatholicEd MarkeyDemocraticCatholic21 more rows
Who is the leader of the Senate quizlet?
The Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate, the Senate's presiding officer.
Who is the Senate minority leader today?
Her tie-breaking vote established a Democratic majority in the Senate, making Charles Schumer the majority leader and Mitch McConnell the minority leader.
Who is the majority leader of the House 2021?
Majority Leaders of the House (1899 to present)Congress and YearsNameParty114th (2015–2017)MCCARTHY, KevinRepublican115th (2017–2019)MCCARTHY, KevinRepublican116th (2019–2021)HOYER, Steny HamiltonDemocrat117th (2021–2023)HOYER, Steny HamiltonDemocrat64 more rows
Who is one of the US senators now?
Leahy, Patrick J.
Who is Mitch McConnell?
Mitch McConnell, in full Addison Mitchell McConnell, Jr., (born February 20, 1942, Tuscumbia, Alabama, U.S.), American politician who began his first term representing Kentucky in the U.S. Senate in 1985. A Republican, he served as majority whip (2003–07), minority leader (2007–15; 2021– ), and majority leader (2015–21).
When was Mitch McConnell reelected?
Mitch McConnell celebrating his reelection in 2014. Mitch McConnell celebrating with his wife, Elaine Chao, after he was reelected to a sixth term in the Senate, 2014. J. Scott Applewhite/AP Images. In 2016 McConnell caused controversy when he refused to bring Obama’s Supreme Court nominee, Merrick Garland, to a vote in the Senate.
What was McConnell's role in the bipartisan deal?
McConnell became a key figure in drafting a bipartisan deal that included significant cuts but no changes to the various entitlement programs. In addition, tax increases, which McConnell and the Republicans opposed, were also absent.
What did the Department of Homeland Security do in 2005?
In 2005 he served on a bipartisan Senate committee that made recommendations for broad changes to the Department of Homeland Security, the government agency charged with protecting the country against terrorist attacks in the wake of the September 11 attacks of 2001.
When did McConnell become the minority leader?
Instead, senators returned on January 19, and McConnell became minority leader on January 20, the same day Trump left office.
Where did McConnell go to law school?
His family moved from Alabama to Louisville, Kentucky, when he was 13. He graduated from the University of Louisville in 1964 and from the University of Kentucky Law School in 1967. From 1968 to 1970 McConnell was a legislative assistant to U.S. Sen. Marlow Cook.
Who are the two Supreme Court Justices that McConnell confirmed?
Under McConnell the Senate approved numerous other Trump judicial nominees, including two other Supreme Court justices, Brett Kavanaugh (2018) and Amy Coney Barrett (2020). Both confirmations were contentious, with Barrett’s being particularly controversial as it came in an election year.
Who Is Mitch McConnell?
Politician Mitch McConnell began his career as an elected official as judge-executive of Kentucky's Jefferson County in 1977. Elected to the U.S. Senate as a moderate Republican in 1984, he displayed a political acumen that enabled him to rise to the position of minority leader in 2006. McConnell gained national attention for his opposition to President Barack Obama 's legislative ambitions, helping to turn the tide against Democratic control of Congress. Named Senate majority leader in 2014, he infamously refused to allow Senate hearings for a new Supreme Court nominee in 2016 following the death of Justice Antonin Scalia .
What was Mitch McConnell's first term?
During his first term in the Senate, McConnell earned a spot on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and advocated for tax reform. Gaining traction after his re-election in 1990, he became known for his opposition to campaign-finance reform, and successfully spearheaded an effort to block legislation on that front in 1994.
What happened to McConnell's tax bill?
However, McConnell got back on track by securing the passage of a sweeping Senate tax reform bill in early December. After he and House Speaker Paul Ryan reconciled their differences, the $1.5 trillion tax bill passed on December 20, 2017, giving Trump his first major legislative victory.
How many daughters does Mitch McConnell have?
McConnell has three daughters with his first wife, Sherrill Redmon. In 1993, he married his second wife, Elaine Chao, who later served as George W. Bush’s secretary of labor. In November 2016, Chao was tapped by president-elect Trump for the position of transportation secretary.
What did McConnell oppose?
Most notably, he opposed the passage of the economic stimulus package, known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, and the health insurance reform package, the Affordable Care Act (also known as "Obamacare") in 2010.
When did Mitch McConnell end the shutdown?
He continued to push the Republican narrative of wasteful Democratic spending, fueling an ongoing dispute over the federal debt limit that eventually forced him into a deal to end a government shutdown in October 2013. Although his compromise angered the Tea Party faction of the GOP, McConnell survived the ensuing power struggle that brought down top House Republicans Eric Cantor and John Boehner. His re-election to the Senate capped another wave of Republican gains in 2014, giving him his long-coveted role of Senate majority leader.
When did Mitch McConnell sue the Federal Election Commission?
Named chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee in 1996, McConnell continued to buck the tide at opportune moments. He sued the Federal Election Commission following the passage of the bipartisan McCain-Feingold Act in 2002, and in 2006, he opposed a constitutional amendment to ban the desecration of the American flag.
What did Mitch McConnell do to defend Citizens United?
He filed a challenge to the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reforms, a lawsuit that went all the way to the Supreme Court. And he founded the James Madison Center for Free Speech in Indiana with conservative lawyer James Bopp, who would eventually bring the Citizens United case that opened the super PAC floodgates. When U.S. News & World Report ran a headline calling McConnell the “Darth Vader” of campaign finance reform, he had it framed and hung in his office.
What did McConnell do in college?
If you went to college or law school with him, he could have been your idealistic friend. McConnell made a point of witnessing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s March on Washington and rallied for civil rights on campus. Later as a staffer for Sen. Marlow Cook (R), he worked on the unsuccessful effort to pass the Equal Rights Amendment. During Watergate, he argued in favor of campaign finance reform. He even used the word “progressive” as a compliment.#N#3. He Tried To Protect The Environment In The Past
How many acres did McConnell add to Jefferson County?
He Tried To Protect The Environment In The Past. As the county judge-executive for Jefferson County, Kentucky, over three decades ago, McConnell added nearly 2,000 acres to the Jefferson Memorial Forest. His administration also replaced trees uprooted by a tornado.
Does McConnell support free health care?
While he criticizes the president’s program for providing “ free health care “ to people, McConnell has supported quite a bit of that himself — from free cancer treatment for uranium enrichment plant workers in Paducah to dental care and pregnancy counseling in Madisonville.
Did Mitch McConnell give away free health care?
He’s a much more complicated politician than he’d like you to believe. 1. McConnell Has Given Away A Lot Of Free Health Care. McConnell has been a little tongue-tied about what should happen to Kynect, the Kentucky edition of Obamacare.
Who is the guy who runs the Hee Haw ads?
A tradition of his campaigns is to run ads that make “Hee Haw” look like Ingmar Bergman. In these ads — which have frequently featured animals in pivotal roles — McConnell pits down-home Southerners against Washington city slickers. Often the spots offer a decidedly populist economic bent, which is at odds with much of his own congressional record.
Who were the two senators before McConnell?
Before McConnell came Sens. Cook and John Sherman Cooper. Both were iconoclasts, and both helped McConnell early in his rise to power. But he turned out to be nothing like either one.
Why is Mitch McConnell so successful?
It boils down to three things: McConnell controls lots of money; he is willing to destroy any opposition, including Republicans; and the local Republican political machine backs him.
What is the second part of McConnell's success?
The second part of McConnell's success is that he willingly destroys his political opposition. All candidates daring to run for a powerful political office in Kentucky must get McConnell's approval, or they will experience his wrath.
What is McConnell's Achilles heel?
The third aspect of McConnell's success is the local Republican machine, although it's also McConnell's Achilles heel because it will abandon him if he stops delivering. The Republican machine has only one goal, winning, and it wants wins throughout the state, from magistrates to governor. These people also want to win Senate and House seats, and McConnell delivers those wins. Because of this success, the machine does what McConnell wants. They back his candidates, and they shun the ones he shuns. In return, McConnell sends a bit of cash their way for local races.
What is McConnell's power?
Money is the main source of McConnell's power, and this breaks down into three parts. First, he gets donations from the Chamber of Commerce wing of the Republican Party. They use his power in the Senate to further their interests. The Chamber is invested in foreign trade, and foreign trade means mostly China.
Does McConnell send money to local races?
In return, McConnell sends a bit of cash their way for local races. The machine is the most important part of any political organization. It has the people on the ground getting out the vote, passing out yard signs, and getting small donations for local candidates.
Who is Mitch McConnell?
Mitch McConnell is the current Senate majority leader and a lawmaker who has represented Kentucky since 1985.
Why is Mitch McConnell called "cocaine mitch"?
Mitch McConnell was given the uncanny nickname in 2018 by businessman Don Blankenship, who at the time was running to represent West Virginia in the US Senate.
Who Is Mitch McConnell?
Early Years and Education
- Addison Mitchell McConnell Jr. was born on February 20, 1942, in Sheffield, Alabama. After contracting polio at age two, he recovered through his mother's vigorous therapy sessions, even developing into a talented baseball player. A new job for Addison Sr. brought the family to Louisville, Kentucky, where McConnell became student body president at duPont Manual High S…
Early Political Career
- Setting his sights on a career in politics, McConnell interned for Kentucky Congressman Gene Snyder and Senator John Sherman Cooper in the mid-1960s. He served as chief legislative assistant for Senator Marlow Cook after law school, and later became a deputy assistant attorney general to President Gerald Ford. In 1977, McConnell earned his first elected seat as judge-exec…
U.S. Senator
- During his first term in the Senate, McConnell earned a spot on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and advocated for tax reform. Gaining traction after his re-election in 1990, he became known for his opposition to campaign-finance reform, and successfully spearheaded an effort to block legislation on that front in 1994. Named chairman of the National Republican Senatorial C…
Republican Leader and Opposition to President Obama
- As the Senate's top Republican, McConnell rejected the Democratic push for establishing a timetable to withdraw troops from Iraq. In late 2008, he threw his support behind the Troubled Asset Relief Program, signed into law by outgoing President George W. Bush. With the 2008 election of President Obama giving Democrats control of the White House and both branches o…
Majority Leader and Supreme Court Controversy
- With the votes in his favor, McConnell turned his attention to new legislation. He oversaw Senate approval of a five-year highway bill, struck deals to enact education and social security reforms and pushed for a bill to address an opioid epidemic. Additionally, he continued his work as the senior member of the Agriculture, Appropriations and Rules Committees. The Senate leader infa…
Trump Administration: Obamacare Repeal, Tax Reform, Wall Vote
- With President Trump in office, McConnell and his fellow Republican lawmakers embarked on their long-promised effort to repeal Obamacare. After some early missteps, the House managed to pass its version of repeal legislation in May 2017. However, the Senate bill failed to generate enough traction to get over the hump, and with the defections of independent-minded Republica…
Impeachment
- In fall 2019, McConnell and his fellow senators mostly took a back seat as the country focused on the impeachment hearings of President Trump in the House of Representatives. The lower chamber voted almost entirely along party lines in December to charge the president with abuse of power and obstruction of justice, though House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refused to immediatel…
Personal Life
- A devoted Baptist, McConnell in 2016 published a book, The Long Game, about his life and career in politics. McConnell has three daughters with his first wife, Sherrill Redmon. In 1993, he married his second wife, Elaine Chao, who later served as George W. Bush’s secretary of labor. In November 2016, Chao was tapped by president-elect Trump for the position of transportation se…