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The Modern Senate, 1964-Present

This collection of brief essays describes important events and personalities in Senate history, and highlights recurring themes in the Senate's institutional development during the modern era of the Senate, 1964 to the present (click on title for full story).


Harry Truman Visits the Senate
May 8, 1964
Harry Truman often said the happiest years of his life were spent in the United States Senate. It is not surprising, therefore, that he chose to celebrate his 80th birthday with a return visit.
 
Civil Rights Filibuster Ended
June 10, 1964
Before the Senate could vote on the Civil Rights Act of 1964, it first had to end the filibuster that delayed that vote. After weeks of careful organizing, head counting, and skillful persuasion, the bill's supporters had enough votes to achieve cloture, end debate, and force a vote on one of the most important bills of the 20th century.
 
The Senate's Taj Mahal
June 25, 1964
Today, the U.S. Capitol has many rooms and spaces named after respected senators.  The tradition of named spaces dates back to 1964, when room S-211, informally known as the "Taj Mahal," became the Lyndon B. Johnson Room.
 
Senators Wrestle to Settle Nomination
July 9, 1964
When Senator Strom Thurmond attempted to prevent the Commerce Committee from obtaining a quorum so it could vote on a nomination, Ralph Yarborough jovially tried to talk him out of it. In a similarly light-hearted manner, Thurmond challenged Yarborough to a wrestling match in which the winner would have his way.
 
Presiding Officers
July 15, 1965
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Senate party officials had experienced difficulty in recruiting temporary presiding officers for late-afternoon and evening sessions of the Senate. This situation came to a dramatic head on the evening of July 17, 1965, during one of Senator Wayne Morse's late afternoon floor speeches.
 
The Voting Rights Act of 1965--A Legacy
August 6, 1965
On August 6, President Lyndon Johnson came to the Capitol to sign the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Following a ceremony in the Rotunda, the president, congressional leaders, Martin Luther King, Rosa Parks, and others crowded into the President's Room near the Senate Chamber for the actual signing.
 
Vietnam Hearings
January 24, 1966
On January 24, 1966, Secretary of State Dean Rusk appeared before a closed hearing of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. His testimony convinced committee chairman J. William Fulbright that the administration of President Lyndon Johnson was blinded by its "anticommunist assumptions." Fulbright launched a high-profile series of widely televised public "educational" hearings on the Vietnam War in February 1966.
 
"Do not decimate this little subcommittee"
February 17, 1967
Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen of Illinois, known for his mellifluous voice and oratorical skills, frequently entertained and enlightened his Senate colleagues.  One day in 1967, he used those skills to defend an obscure little subcommittee.
 
Filibuster Derails Supreme Court Appointment
October 1, 1968
Chief Justice Earl Warren announced his retirement just in time to allow outgoing President Lyndon Johnson to name his successor. Johnson nominated his long-time confidant, Associate Justice Abe Fortas. The controversial nomination sparked a heated Senate confirmation debate and the first-ever filibuster to block a Supreme Court nomination.
 
Carl Hayden Retires
January 3, 1969
Thirty-four-year-old Carl Hayden arrived on Capitol Hill in 1912 as Arizona’s first member in the House of Representatives. He retired as that state’s senior senator on January 3, 1969, at the age of 91. Hayden spent 56 consecutive years in Congress, including 42 in the Senate, for a total of 20,773 days.
 
Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen Dies
September 7, 1969
Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen, arguably the most effective minority leader in Senate history, died on September 7, 1969.  More than just a skillful legislator, Dirksen personified the U.S. Senate in the 1960s, and even became a recording star.
 
Loud and clear
January 25, 1971
On January 25, 1971, the Senate chamber's current voice amplification system began operation, thus ending over one hundred years of the chamber's poor acoustics. Although a vocal performance to test the new chamber in 1858 was judged a success, senators, who first occupied the completed chamber in 1859, were not so sure. Over the years, as the nation grew, additional senators exacerbated the noise problem, and even a 1949-'50 renovation project failed to help. 1971 finally brought relief.
 
First Female Pages Appointed
May 14, 1971
The tradition of Senate pages dates back to the 1830s, when Senator Daniel Webster appointed nine-year-old Grafton Hanson to run errands and serve as messenger. Hundreds of boys have followed in Hanson's footsteps.  Not until 1971, however, did any girls follow that path.  On May 14 of that year, two 16-year-old girls broke another gender barrier to become the first female pages.
 
Senate Office Buildings Named
October 11, 1972
Senator Harry Truman liked to tell his constituents to send his mail to "Harry Truman, S.O.B., Washington."  Undoubtedly, Truman had great fun with this, but "S.O.B." really stood for Senate Office Building. When a second building opened, it became the "New S.O.B.," distinguished from the "Old S.O.B." of Truman's days.  When the Senate opened its third building, however, members decided it was time for new labels.
 
Watergate Leaks Lead to Open Hearings
March 28, 1973
On March 28, 1973, the Senate held its first hearing on the Watergate break-in. That nearly five-hour meeting generated so many leaks to the media that committee leaders decided to conduct all future hearings in public session.
 
Wayne Morse
July 22, 1974
Former Oregon Senator Wayne Morse died on July 22,1974. His admirers knew him as "The Tiger in the Senate." His many enemies, including five presidents, called him a lot worse. Today he is remembered as a gifted lawmaker and principled maverick who thrived on controversy.
 
Church Committee Created
January 27, 1975
Late in 1974, investigative reporter Seymour Hersh revealed that the CIA was not only destabilizing foreign governments, but was also conducting illegal intelligence operations against thousands of American citizens. On January 27, 1975, an aroused Senate voted overwhelmingly to establish a special 11-member investigating body along the lines of the recently concluded Watergate Committee.  Under the chairmanship of Idaho Senator Frank Church, with Texas Senator John Tower as vice-chairman, the select committee was given nine months and 150 staffers to complete its work.
 
Senate Reform Commission
July 29, 1975
Soon after he entered the Senate early in 1975, Iowa Democrat John Culver concluded that the upper house was in danger of becoming dysfunctional. On July 29, 1975, in response to Senator Culver’s widely shared concerns, the Senate authorized the first-ever review of its administrative and legislative operations by an outside panel. Today, the Culver/Hughes Commission retains its status as the only outside body ever invited to review the Senate’s internal operations.
 
Closest Election in Senate History
September 16, 1975
The closest election in Senate history was decided on September 16, 1975. The 1974 New Hampshire race for an open seat that pitted Republican Louis Wyman against Democrat John Durkin.
 
Resolving Contested Elections
March 4, 1976
In the early months of 1975, the Senate struggled to resolve two contested elections. In New Hampshire, Republican Louis Wyman claimed a 355-vote margin over Democrat John Durkin. The second protracted 1975 contest involved the Oklahoma seat to which Republican Henry Bellmon was seeking reelection.
 
A Shrine Restored
June 16, 1976
After the Senate moved to its current chamber in 1859, the Supreme Court took up residence in the old chamber until 1935, when it moved to its permanent building.  The Senate and House then agreed to restore the room to its 1850s elegance. Despite this agreement, decades passed with no action. Finally, the old Senate chamber restoration project concluded with a festive dedication ceremony on June 16, 1976.
 
"Byrd's History"
March 21, 1980
On March 21, 1980, Senate Majority Leader Robert C. Byrd launched a unique historical project – an unprecedented series of addresses on the Senate's history and operations. These essays, later revised and published, became the centerpiece of the Senate's 1989 bicentennial commemoration.
 
Hart Building Opens Under Protest
November 22, 1982
Recognizing the looming  need for more Senate working space, Congress in 1972 authorized construction of a third office building. In 1976, as workers broke ground for the third facility, senators agreed to name it after Michigan’s Philip A. Hart, a deeply respected colleague who was then in his final struggle with cancer. When the building’s office suites for 50 senators became ready in November 1982, only a bold few senators chose to risk public scorn by moving there.
 
Bomb Explodes in Capitol
November 7, 1983
On November 7, 1983, at 10:58 p.m., a thunderous explosion tore through the second floor of the Capitol’s north wing. Fortunately, owing to the late hour, the adjacent halls were virtually deserted. Although the explosion caused no structural damage to the Capitol, it shattered mirrors, chandeliers, and furniture.  Officials calculated damages of $250,000.
 
Live Television from the Senate Chamber
June 2, 1986
By early 1986, Majority Leader Bob Dole and Democratic Leader Robert C. Byrd worried that the lack of television coverage was transforming the Senate into the nation’s forgotten legislative body.  House members were becoming far more visible than senators to their constituents.  The two leaders eventually engineered a vote in which the Senate agreed to a three-month trial period, with live national coverage to begin on June 2, 1986.  Within weeks, the Senate voted to make this coverage permanent.
 
"Mountains and Clouds" Dedicated
May 5, 1987
The monumental sculpture, entitled Mountains and Clouds, occupies the nine-story atrium of the Hart Senate Office Building.  Rising 51 feet, the mountains are formed from 36 tons of sheet steel painted black.  Suspended above this stabile is a 75-foot-wide black mobile, representing clouds. The Senate dedicated Mountains and Clouds on May 5, 1987.
 
Feet First
February 24, 1988
On February 23, 1988, Majority Leader Robert C. Byrd decided the time had come to end a filibuster on Senate campaign finance reform. The leader moved to instruct the sergeant at arms to arrest the absentees. Senate Sergeant at Arms Henry Guigni, a former vice squad policeman, led a "posse of six Capitol police officers" in a post-midnight search of members' hideaway offices and Senate office building suites.
 
The Senate Celebrates 200 Years
April 6, 1989
In the early 1980s, Senate leaders began to think ahead to the body’s forthcoming 200th anniversary in 1989.  Wishing to maximize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to focus national attention on the Senate’s history, traditions, and constitutional role, floor leaders Howard Baker and Robert C. Byrd arranged for the establishment of a special 15-member Study Group on the Commemoration of the Senate Bicentenary.
 
Old-time Filibuster Revived
October 5, 1992
In a real-life imitation of Hollywood classic "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington," New York Senator Alfonse D’Amato tried to save a typewriter factory. On October 5, 1992, for the first time since the Senate inaugurated gavel-to-gavel television coverage of its floor proceedings in 1986, television viewers had the opportunity to watch a senator conduct an old-fashioned filibuster—a dusk-to-dawn talkathon.
 
"Year of the Woman"
January 3, 1993
In the elections of November 1992, four women were elected to the United States Senate. Never before had this happened in a single election year. When the newcomers joined incumbents Kassebaum and Mikulski in January 1993, headline-writers hailed “The Year of the Woman.”
 
Senate Impeachment Trial Powers Upheld
January 13, 1993
What is the meaning of the verb “to try?”  In 1992, justices of the U.S. Supreme Court consulted a shelf-full of dictionaries in search of a precise answer.  They sought to settle a case initiated by a federal district judge, who in 1989 had been impeached by the House of Representatives and removed from office by the Senate.  Imprisoned on a conviction for lying to a grand jury, Judge Walter Nixon disputed the Senate’s interpretation of “try” as it exercised its exclusive constitutional power to “to try all impeachments.”
 
Delayed Lecture
March 24, 1998
In 1998, Majority Leader Trent Lott introduced his "Leader's Lecture Series," which would present observations of nine former Senate party leaders and vice presidents of the United States. The first speaker was 95-year-old Mike Mansfield who took the lectern to recall lessons learned during his record-setting tenure as leader, from 1961 to 1977.  With the Montana Democrat’s opening remarks, it became clear to the audience that the evening would bring an added historical treat.
 
The Capitol Building as a Target
September 11, 2001
On the morning of September 11, 2001, the Capitol once again became the target of foreign enemies.  As two hijacked commercial airplanes thundered into the twin towers of New York City’s World Trade Center, and another flew into the Pentagon, a fourth plane—through the heroic struggle of its passengers—missed its intended target and crashed into a Pennsylvania field southeast of Pittsburgh. Subsequent investigations by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks discovered a high probability that the Capitol was the intended target of the Flight 93 hijackers.
 
New Seniority Record
November 7, 2002
In 2002, the Senate set a new record for member seniority. For the first time in history, the Senate included three incumbent members who have served 40 or more years—Senators Strom Thurmond, Robert C. Byrd, and Edward Kennedy. The start of the 108th Congress also saw a Senate with three 40-year veterans: Senators Byrd, Kennedy, and Daniel Inouye.
 
The Unforgettable 107th Congress
November 22, 2002
Over the course of its 656 days in session, from January 3, 2001, to November 22, 2002, the 107th Congress proved to be, in the title of a 2003 memoir by Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, “Like No Other Time.”
 
"Lady Freedom Among Us"
December 2, 2008
A magnificent 19-foot-tall plaster statue rises in the Capitol Visitor Center's Emancipation Hall. This Statue of Freedom looks so fresh that a visitor might think it was created for just that space. In fact, it is 150 years old.
 
 
  

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