With 100 members who have a greater degree of independence than their House counterparts, the U.S. Senate is the more deliberative chamber of Congress.
Because of arcane rules and procedures, a significant minority of senators -- or, in some cases, even a single member -- can grind the chamber to a halt or prevent it from considering controversial bills or measures.
These rules mean that most legislation has to have the vote of at least 60 senators to have a good chance of becoming law.
The Senate is also the body that considers presidential appointments to federal judgeships and Cabinet positions. It must also approve all international treaties before they become binding.
Unlike the House, where representation is decided by a state’s population, each state gets two seats in the Senate. Senators are elected statewide, though many states did not allow for the direct election of senators until the 20th century.
The presiding officer in the Senate is the vice president, though his or her role is largely a ceremonial one. The vice president only votes to break a tie. More influential in the day-to-day affairs of the Senate is the majority leader.
The vice president makes $215,700 a year (in 2007), adjusted for inflation. The president pro tem of the Senate, the longest serving member of the majority party, gets $183,500 a year, the same salary as the chamber’s majority and minority members. Senators without leadership positions make $165,200 a year. An automatic pay raise for 2007 was frozen under a spending bill passed earlier this year, but a raise for 2008 will go into effect unless Congress takes further action.
Senators serve a six-year term.
