114th United States Congress

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Features of Congress

Background
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Sessions
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Analysis
Lifetime voting recordsNet worth of United States Senators and RepresentativesStaff salaries of United States Senators and RepresentativesNational Journal vote ratings

The 114th United States Congress was the 2015-2016 session of the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government, composed of the Senate and the House of Representatives. A total of 471 members were elected or re-elected on November 4, 2014. The 114th Congress convened on January 3, 2015, and concluded on January 3, 2017.

The Republican Party maintained its majority in the House and won a majority in the Senate following the 2014 midterm elections. Of the 435 seats in the House, Republicans controlled 247 at the start of the session. This gave them their largest majority in the House since 1928, when they held 270 seats.

The 114th Congress included more women and minorities than any previous Congress. Between both chambers, 96 racial minority members and 104 women served in the 114th Congress.[1] According to Daily Kos Elections, 59 percent of House Democrats elected to the 114th Congress were women, minorities, or LGBT.[2]

There was also an increase in the number of Republican minorities and women elected on November 4, 2014. Mia Love (R-Utah) was the first Republican Black woman elected to the House. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) became the youngest woman ever to serve on Capitol Hill when she won election in the 21st Congressional District of New York.[3] Overall, the number of Republican women in Congress increased from 23 to 28.[2]

In terms of experience, around 49 percent of House members had served less than six years since they were first elected. Of the newly elected House members, 17 were Democrats and 44 were Republicans. In the Senate, 47 members had served less than one full term. More than half (29) of those freshman senators were Republicans.[2]

Incumbents in both chambers saw a high rate of retention after the 2014 elections. Close to 96 percent of the incumbents who ran for re-election won their races.[4]

Following the 2016 election, Republicans saw a net loss of two seats in the Senate but retained control of the chamber with a 52-48 majority. Republicans also retained control of the House with a 241-194 majority but had a net loss of five seats.

Leadership

Senate

Position Representative Party
President of the Senate Joe Biden Electiondot.png Democratic
Senate Majority Leadership
President pro tempore Orrin Hatch Ends.png Republican
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Ends.png Republican
Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn Ends.png Republican
Senate Minority Leadership
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid Electiondot.png Democratic
Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin Electiondot.png Democratic

House of Representatives

Position Representative Party
Speaker of the House Paul Ryan Ends.png Republican
House Majority Leadership
House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy Ends.png Republican
House Majority Whip Steve Scalise Ends.png Republican
House Minority Leadership
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi Electiondot.png Democratic
House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer Electiondot.png Democratic
  • Speaker Boehner announced on September 25, 2015, that he would resign from his seat at the end of October 2015.[5]

Members

See also: List of current members of the U.S. Congress

Partisan balance

The numbers reflect the composition of the 114th Congress.

U.S. Senate Partisan Breakdown
Party As of November 2016 After the 2016 Election
     Democratic Party 44 46
     Republican Party 54 52
     Independent 2 2
Total 100 100
U.S. House Partisan Breakdown
Party As of November 2016 After the 2016 Election
     Democratic Party 186 194
     Republican Party 246 241
     Vacant 3 0
Total 435 435


Key votes

Iran nuclear deal

See also: Iran nuclear agreement, 2015

The P5+1 and the European Union, also known as the E3+3, reached an agreement with Iran regarding the development of its nuclear program on July 14, 2015.[6] The deal limited Iran's nuclear development in exchange for sanctions relief.[7]

President Barack Obama and the majority of congressional Democrats praised the deal, while Republicans largely opposed the deal. The Senate cast the first vote regarding the deal on September 10, 2015. Senate Democrats filibustered the measure to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal by a vote of 58-42.[8] Sixty votes were needed to proceed to HJ Res 61, The Hire More Heroes Act of 2015, the legislative vehicle the Senate was expected to use to disapprove of the Iran nuclear deal.[9]

Senate Republican leaders said that the September 10 vote would not be the final vote. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn (R-Texas) said, "It will be all Iran next week. There are going to be more votes. There will be other opportunities for people to change their mind next week, hopefully after they hear from their constituents."[10]

TPP trade deal

See also: The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, 2015

President Barack Obama and two of his longtime opponents and critics, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and Speaker of the House John Boehner (R-Ohio) supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). They said it would create new jobs by opening up foreign markets for exporting goods, set minimum standards for working conditions in the 11 other nations, and level the playing field in the global market.

Congress passedtrade promotion authority (TPA), also known as fast-track authority. TPA gives the president the ability to negotiate trade deals and requires Congress to cast a simple up or down vote on a deal without amendments or filibustering. Obama said that TPA would help ease the passage of current and future trade deals like the TPP and the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (T-TIP), a trade deal with the European Union. Congress also passed trade adjustment assistance (TAA), which provides American workers who have lost jobs due to globalization with employment-related assistance. Obama signed TPA and TAA into law on June 29, 2015.[11]

Liberal Democrats led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.), labor unions, and tea party and conservative Republicans opposed the TPP and TPA legislation and criticized Obama's efforts to negotiate a deal. Critics compared the TPP to the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and said that Americans would lose jobs, as they did after NAFTA was signed into law.

Defunding Planned Parenthood

After the Center for Medical Progress (CMP) released a series of secretly recorded videos that showed employees of Planned Parenthood discussing research conducted on aborted fetal tissue, a group of conservative Republicans pledged not to vote for any funding legislation that continued to allocate federal dollars to the reproductive healthcare organization. Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards said. the videos were heavily edited and fraudulent.[12][13][14]

Despite their efforts to defund Planned Parenthood, Congress avoided a government shutdown by passing legislation to keep the government funded until December 11, 2015, that included funding for Planned Parenthood.[15]

Analysis

Salary

Members of Congress were paid $174,000 per year. Senate majority and minority leaders, as well as the president pro tempore, received $193,400. The Speaker of the House received $223,500.[16]

Some historical facts about the salary of United States Congress members:

  • In 1789, members of the Congress received $6 per diem[16]
  • In 1874, members of the Congress earned $5,000 per year[16]
  • In 1990, members of the Congress earned $98,400 per year[16]
  • From 2000-2006, the salary of a member of the United States Congress increased every year, going from $141,300-$165,200, in that time span.[16]

114th Congress: Demographics

The 114th Congress included more women and minorities than any previous Congress.

Tim Scott (R) was the first Black senator elected from South Carolina since the Reconstruction. Elise Stefanik (R) was the youngest woman to serve on Capitol Hill after being elected by the 21st Congressional District of New York.

There were three Latino members, two Black members, one Pacific Islander, and 20 women in the U.S. Senate. In the U.S. House, there were 85 minorities, 84 women, and six openly LGBT members.[17]

André Carson (D), the representative of Indiana's 7th Congressional District, was the first Muslim to serve on the United States House of Representatives Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.[18]

Election rivals serving concurrently

There were several members of the U.S. House who were rivals in previous elections. The following is a list of such cases in the 114th Congress.

Noteworthy events

  • Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died on February 13, 2 016.[21] His death made the filling of the Supreme Court vacancy a key issue for the U.S. Senate in 2016.[22]
  • Michael Grimm (R), representative of New York's 11th Congressional District, announced his decision to resign on December 29, 2014. His resignation date was established as January 5, 2015, after the congressional inauguration. The decision came after Grimm pleaded guilty to felony tax evasion. He was the only Republican representative from New York City.[25]
  • Congressional Democrats criticized Steve Scalise (R), representative of Louisiana's 1st Congressional District and the newly elected House majority whip, after his office confirmed that he had attended a gathering by a white supremacist organization in 2002. Scalise's staff said that he did not know the nature of the group or the implications of his decision at the time. In response, congressional Democrats called upon Republican leadership to reconsider Scalise as the House majority whip. This request was not granted. House Speaker John Boehner (R) defended Scalise, saying, "He has my full confidence as our Whip."[26][27]

Special elections

District Prior Incumbent General Election Candidates Election Date Winner Partisan Switch?
New York's 11th Michael Grimm Republican Party Daniel Donovan
Democratic Party Vincent Gentile
Green Party James Lane
May 5, 2015 Republican Party Daniel Donovan No
Mississippi's 1st Alan Nunnelee Democratic Party Walter Zinn
Republican Party Boyce Adams
Republican Party Nancy Collins
Republican Party Trent Kelly
Republican Party Quentin Whitwell
Republican Party Chip Mills
Republican Party Greg Pirkle
Republican Party Daniel Sparks
Republican Party Mike Tagert
Republican Party Sam Adcock
Republican Party Ed Holliday
Republican Party Starner Jones
Republican Party Henry Ross
May 12, 2015 Republican Party Trent Kelly No
Illinois' 18th Aaron Schock Democratic Party Robert Mellon
Republican Party Darin LaHood
September 10, 2015 Republican Party Darin LaHood No
Ohio's 8th John Boehner Democratic Party Corey Foister
Republican Party Warren Davidson
Green Party James Condit, Jr.
June 7, 2016 Republican Party Warren Davidson No
Pennsylvania's 2nd Chaka Fattah Democratic Party Dwight Evans
Republican Party James Jones
November 8, 2016 Democratic Party Dwight Evans No
Hawaii's 1st Mark Takai Democratic Party Colleen Hanabusa
Democratic Party Peter Cross
Democratic Party Angela Aulani Kaaihue
Democratic Party Howard Kim
Democratic Party Javier Ocasio
Republican Party Shirlene Ostrov
Libertarian Party Alan Yim
Grey.png Calvin Griffin
Grey.png Yvonne Perry
Grey.png Peter Plotzeneder
November 8, 2016 Democratic Party Colleen Hanabusa No
Kentucky's 1st Ed Whitfield Republican Party James Comer
Democratic Party Sam Gaskins
November 8, 2016 Republican Party James Comer No


Congressional committees

Partisan Breakdown

Due to losing the majority in the U.S. Senate, Democrats lost a number of seats in Senate standing committees in the 114th Congress.

In the committees on Finance, Foreign Relations, Intelligence, Judiciary, Small Business, and Veterans Affairs, the Democrats lost one seat. The standing committees in the U.S. House were left relatively unchanged due to Republicans previously holding the majority in that chamber.[28]

U.S. House

Congressional committees (House)

Page:
United States House of Representatives Committee on Foreign Affairs    
United States House of Representatives Committee on House Administration    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Judiciary    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Armed Services    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Ethics    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Intelligence (Permanent Select)    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Small Business    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Oversight and Accountability    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Agriculture    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Homeland Security    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Rules    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Budget    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology    
United States House of Representatives Committee on Veterans' Affairs    
United States House of Representatives Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party    

U.S. Senate

Congressional committees (Senate)

Page:
United States Senate Committee on Armed Services    
United States Senate Committee on Ethics (Select)    
United States Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship    
United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry    
United States Senate Committee on Indian Affairs    
United States Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs    
United States Senate Committee on Aging (Special)    
United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs    
United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation    
United States Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources    
United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs    
United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration    
United States Senate Committee on Appropriations    
United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations    
United States Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions    
United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works    
United States Senate Committee on Intelligence (Select)    
United States Senate Committee on Budget    
United States Senate Committee on Finance    
United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary    

Joint committees

Congressional committees (Joint)

Page:
United States Congress Joint Committee on Printing    
United States Congress Joint Committee on the Library    
United States Congress Joint Economic Committee    
United States Congress Joint Committee on Taxation    

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. New York Times, "New Congress Includes More Women, Minorities," January 4, 2015
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 Daily Kos, "Your guide to 2014's election results and the 114th Congress members and their districts," December 4, 2014
  3. Politico, "GOP ranks to get slightly more diverse," November 6, 2014
  4. Politifact, "Congress has 11% approval ratings but 96% incumbent reelection rate," November 11, 2014
  5. The New York Times, "Boehner Will Resign from Congress," September 25, 2015
  6. The Guardian, "Iran nuclear deal reached in Vienna," July 14, 2015
  7. Wall Street Journal, "Iran, World Powers Reach Nuclear Deal," July 14, 2015
  8. Congress.gov, "S.Amdt.2640 to H.J.Res.61," accessed September 10, 2015
  9. Congress.gov, "HJ Res 61," accessed September 10, 2015
  10. The Hill, "Dems filibuster Iran vote," accessed September 10, 2015
  11. The White House, "On Trade, Here’s What the President Signed into Law," June 29, 2015
  12. HeritageAction.com, "Defund Planned Parenthood," accessed September 9, 2015
  13. The Guardian, "Planned Parenthood says covertly filmed videos were heavily altered," accessed September 14, 2015
  14. YouTube.com, "Planned Parenthood: Cecile Richards' Official Video Response," accessed September 14, 2015
  15. Congress.gov, "H.R.719 - TSA Office of Inspection Accountability Act of 2015," accessed October 2, 2015
  16. 16.0 16.1 16.2 16.3 16.4 U.S. Senate, "Salaries," accessed May 29, 2012
  17. Daily Kos, "Your guide to 2014's election results and the 114th Congress members and their districts," December 4, 2014
  18. Politico, "Nancy Pelosi to name first Muslim lawmaker to House intelligence committee," January 13, 2015
  19. NPR, "President Obama To Announce Merrick Garland As Supreme Court Nominee," accessed March 16, 2016
  20. United States Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit, "Merrick B. Garland," accessed August 22, 2013
  21. San Antonio-Express News, "Senior U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia found dead at West Texas ranch," accessed February 13, 2016
  22. NPR, "Scalia's Death Will Cast A Long Shadow Across This Year's Senate Races," February 17, 2016
  23. Cleveland.com, "House speaker John Boehner to resign post, leave Congress on Oct. 30," September 25, 2015
  24. New York Times, "Kevin McCarthy expected to seek speaker John Boehner's post in house," September 25, 2015
  25. New York Times, "Michael Grimm, in a Reversal, Will Resign From Congress," December 30, 2014
  26. New York Times, "Scalise’s Speech to White Supremacist Group Clouds Republicans’ Plans," December 30, 2014
  27. CNN, "GOP leadership stands by Scalise after white supremacist speech," December 31, 2014
  28. Politico, "Senate Democrats losing committee seats," December 12, 2014