United States Senate

E886

The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the U.S. Congress, composed of two senators from each state who share responsibility for making federal laws, confirming key executive and judicial appointments, and ratifying treaties.

All labels observed (16)

How this entity was disambiguated

Statements (57)

Predicate Object
instanceOf chamber of the United States Congress
upper house of bicameral legislature
clotureThreshold three-fifths of Senators duly chosen and sworn (typically 60)
confirms Cabinet-level appointments
Supreme Court justices
ambassadors
federal judges
contrastedWith United States House of Representatives representation by population
country United States of America
createdBy Article I of the United States Constitution
surface form: Constitution of the United States, Article I
dateEstablished 1789
establishedBy United States Constitution
hasCheckAndBalanceFunction check on executive branch
check on judicial branch
hasCitizenshipRequirement at least 9 years U.S. citizenship
hasCommitteeSystem joint committees
select committees
standing committees
hasElectionCycle staggered
hasElectionFraction approximately one-third of seats every two years
hasLegislativePower power to approve or reject legislation
power to propose amendments to bills
power to propose constitutional amendments
hasMembersFrom U.S. states
hasMembersPerState 2
hasMinimumAgeRequirement 30 years
hasMotto E pluribus unum (shared national motto)
hasNumberOfMembers 100
hasOfficerTitle Senate Majority Leader
surface form: Majority Leader

Majority Whip
Senate Minority Leader
surface form: Minority Leader

Minority Whip
President pro tempore of the United States Senate
surface form: President pro tempore
hasOfficialLanguage English
surface form: English (de facto)
hasPresidingOfficer Vice President of the United States
hasPresidingOfficerTitle President of the United States Senate
surface form: President of the Senate
hasPrimaryFunction advice and consent on presidential appointments
lawmaking
ratification of treaties
trial of impeachments
hasResidencyRequirement inhabitant of the represented state at time of election
hasRule filibuster tradition
hasTermLength 6 years
hasVotingSystem popular vote within each state
impeachmentConvictionThreshold two-thirds of members present
impeachmentRole conducts trials after impeachment by the House of Representatives
legislativeProcessRequires passage of bills by both houses of Congress
locatedIn Washington, D.C.
meetsIn United States Capitol
originalSelectionMethod election by state legislatures
partOf United States Congress
publishesRecord Congressional Record
ratifies treaties negotiated by the President of the United States
represents states as political units
selectionMethodChangedBy Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
sharesLegislativePowerWith United States House of Representatives
treatyRatificationThreshold two-thirds of Senators present

How these facts were elicited

Referenced by (1,769)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Porter J. McCumber legislativeBody United States Senate
Lewis F. Linn legislativeBody United States Senate
Martin D. Hardin memberOf United States Senate
Philemon Dickinson memberOf United States Senate
Jacob Javits memberOf United States Senate
Charles Percy legislativeBody United States Senate
Alexander G. Cattell legislativeBody United States Senate
David Baird Sr. legislativeBody United States Senate
William Joyce Sewell memberOf United States Senate
Peter Muhlenberg memberOf United States Senate
Executive Council of Puerto Rico confirmedBy United States Senate
Gary Warren Hartpence memberOf United States Senate
Tim Wirth legislativeBody United States Senate
Theodore Gilmore Bilbo memberOf United States Senate
James Harlan legislativeBody United States Senate
Hubert D. Stephens memberOf United States Senate
Homer Bone legislativeBody United States Senate
Samuel Livermore memberOf United States Senate
Francis Case memberOf United States Senate
Thomas E. Watson; G. W. F. E. Kirby memberOf United States Senate
subject surface form: Thomas E. Watson
James Lanman memberOf United States Senate
William Bingham legislativeBody United States Senate
Thomas E. Watson memberOf United States Senate
S.1927 legislativeBody United States Senate
Stewart Boxer memberOf United States Senate
subject surface form: Barbara Boxer
Thomas legislativeBody United States Senate
subject surface form: Thomas Daschle
56th United States Congress legislativeBody United States Senate
Jay Clayton confirmedBy United States Senate
Senator George Smathers memberOf United States Senate
subject surface form: George Smathers
52nd United States Congress legislativeBody United States Senate
Joni Ernst memberOf United States Senate
Subcommittee on Airland legislativeChamber United States Senate
Subcommittee on Personnel legislativeChamber United States Senate
Subcommittee on SeaPower legislativeChamber United States Senate
Sumter memberOf United States Senate
subject surface form: Thomas Sumter
55th United States Congress legislativeBody United States Senate
Freddie Dalton Thompson memberOf United States Senate
Assistant Minority Leader legislativeBody United States Senate
subject surface form: Assistant Minority Leader of the United States Senate
Gen. of the Armies confirmedBy United States Senate
Public Law 107-279 legislativeChamber United States Senate