President pro tempore of the United States Senate
The
President pro tempore of the United States Senate is the second-highest-ranking official of the
Senate and the highest-ranking senator. The
Vice President of the United States is the President of the Senate
ex officio, and thus is the highest-ranking member of the Senate; during his absence, the President
pro tempore presides over the Senate.
The President
pro tempore is elected by the Senate; by custom, he is typically the most senior senator in the majority party. Normally, neither the Vice President of the United States nor the President
pro tempore presides; instead, the duty is generally delegated to other senators. The President
pro tempore is third in
line of succession to the Presidency.
The current President
pro tempore of the Senate is
Ted Stevens, a Republican from
Alaska, who has held the office since
January 3,
2003.
|
The seal of the President pro tempore. |
The President
pro tempore is an office of the Senate mandated by
Article I, section 3 of the
Constitution. Although in some ways equivalent to the
Speaker of the House of Representatives, the powers of the President
pro tempore are far more limited. In the Senate, most power rests with party leaders and individual senators. The President
pro tempore represents the Senate at formal events.
Presiding Officer
In the absence of the Vice President of the United States, the President
pro tempore presides over the Senate and, with the Speaker of the House, over
joint sessions of Congress. Due to the high visibility of joint sessions, they are one of very few instances in modern times where the Vice President does make an effort to attend and preside, so Presidents
pro tempore rarely have the opportunity to preside at a joint session. The last such event occurred on
September 20,
2001, when President
George W. Bush made a special address to a joint session of U.S. Congress regarding the
September 11th Terrorist Attacks. Senator
Robert Byrd, the President
pro tempore at the time, took the place of Vice President
Dick Cheney, who was still under
Secret Service and military protection as a precaution against an attempt on President Bush's life.
In the early years of the republic, the President
pro tempore was usually a senator noted for his skill at parliamentary procedure. Over the years, however, the office became less work-a-day and more ceremonial; gradually, it became the custom for it to be given to a senior senator. Since 1945 it has been the invariable rule that the most senior senator of the majority party holds the office.
Presidential disability and succession
The President
pro tempore is one of the two authorities to whom declarations of presidential inability or of ability to resume the presidency must be transmitted under the
25th Amendment to the Constitution. (The Speaker of the House is the other.)
The President
pro tempore is third in the line of
presidential succession, following the Vice President and the Speaker of the House.
The office of President
pro tempore was established in 1789 by the
Constitution of the United States. Originally, the President
pro tempore was appointed on a daily or weekly basis when the
Vice President of the United States was not present to preside over the Senate. Until the
1960s, it was common practice for the Vice President to preside over daily Senate sessions, so the President
pro tempore rarely presided over the Senate unless the Vice Presidency became vacant.
Until 1891, the President
pro tempore only served until the return of the Vice President to the chair or the adjournment of a session of Congress. Between 1792 and 1886, the President
pro tempore was second in the line of
presidential succession following the Vice President and preceding the
Speaker of the House of Representatives. Thus, when President
Andrew Johnson was impeached and tried in 1868, Senate President
pro tempore Benjamin Wade was next in line to the Presidency. Wade's radicalism is thought by most historians to be a major reason why the Senate, which did not want to see Wade in the
White House, acquitted Johnson. The President
pro tempore and the Speaker were removed from the line of succession in 1886, but were restored in 1947. This time, however, the President
pro tempore followed the Speaker.
Following the resignation for health reasons then-President pro tempore
William P. Frye, a Congress divided between progressive Republicans, conservative Republicans, and Democrats reached a compromise by which each of their candidates would rotate holding the office from 1911 to 1913. (See
Presidents pro tempore of the United States Senate, 1911-1913.)
Acting President pro tempore
The President
pro tempore, just like the Vice President, over time has ceased presiding over the Senate on a daily basis, notably due to its lack of power or glamor. More importantly, since the President
pro tempore is now usually the most senior senator of the majority party, he or she most likely also chairs a major Senate committee, along with performing other duties related to seniority. Therefore, the President
pro tempore has less time now than in the past to preside daily over the Senate. Instead, junior senators of the majority party are designated acting President
pro tempore to preside over the Senate on a daily basis. This allows junior senators to learn proper parliamentary procedure.
Permanent Acting President pro tempore
In June 1963, due to the illness of President
pro tempore Carl T. Hayden,
Lee Metcalf was designated
Permanent Acting President pro tempore. No term was imposed on this designation, so Metcalf retained it until he died in office in 1978.
Deputy President pro tempore
The ceremonial post of
Deputy President pro tempore was created for
Hubert Humphrey, a former
Vice President of the United States, in 1977 following his losing bid to become the
Senate majority leader. The Senate resolution creating the position stated that any former
President of the United States or
Vice President of the United States serving in the
United States Senate would be entitled to this position. Since Humphrey's death in 1978, no other former President or Vice President has served in the Senate. As of 2006, four former Presidents, (
Gerald Ford,
Jimmy Carter,
George H.W. Bush, and
Bill Clinton), and three former Vice-Presidents, (
Walter Mondale,
Dan Quayle, and
Al Gore), are eligible for the position of Deputy President
pro tempore. Had former Vice-President
Walter F. Mondale won his
senate election bid, he would have been entitled to the position of Deputy President
pro tempore.
When the President
pro tempore becomes unable to perform the duties of office for an extended period, the current practice is to elect a Senator as Deputy President
pro tempore, as opposed to an Permanent Acting President
pro tempore, to carry out the duties until the President
pro tempore can resume the duties.
George J. Mitchell was elected Deputy President
pro tempore in 1987-1988, due to the illness of President
pro tempore John C. Stennis. The office to date has remained vacant.
Hubert Humphrey and
George Mitchell are the only Senators to date that have held the title.
The post may be purely honorary and ceremonial, but nevertheless, it comes with a salary. By statute, the compensation granted to the position holder equals the rate of annual compensation paid to the President
pro tempore, Majority Leader, and
Minority Leader. (
See .)
President pro tempore emeritus
President pro tempore emeritus is an honorary title given to the most senior member of the minority party in the
United States Senate who has served as President
pro tempore at some time in their career.
Robert Byrd, a
Democrat from
West Virginia, has held the title since
January 15,
2003.
[S. Res. 21, adopted January 15, 2003. "Thanks to the Honorable Robert C. Byrd and His Designation as President Pro Tempore Emeritus," Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 149, p. S843.] |
Strom Thurmond was the first President pro tempore emeritus in 2001-2003. |
The first President
pro tempore emeritus was named in 2001 after Democrats gained a majority in the Senate. Democrat
Robert Byrd was elected President
pro tempore. To honor the previous President
pro tempore, the Senate gave
Republican Strom Thurmond the honorary title of President
pro tempore emeritus.
[S.Res. 103, adopted June 6, 2001. "Thanking and Electing Strom Thurmond Presidentpro tempore emeritus," Congressional Record, daily edition, vol. 147, p. S5844.] Thurmond served from
June 6,
2001 until
January 3,
2003. Byrd is the second President
pro tempore emeritus.
While the President
pro tempore emeritus has no official duties, he works closely with party leaders and advises them on the functions of the Senate as an institution. He also provides leadership and experience, serving as a model for junior members.
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List of Presidents pro tempore of the United States Senate
