As one majority leader put it: "You have to find that elusive grail of harmony among this most heterogeneous mix of opinionated individualists. Majority leaders are active in constructing winning coalitions for their legislative priorities. To this end, a majority leader will consult with the chair of the Rules Committee to discuss procedures for considering legislation on the floor.
For example, an open or restricted amendment process might be options for discussion. Or, the majority leader might decide to call up a bill under suspension of the rules procedure, which limits debate and bars any amendments. To limit policy riders on appropriations bills, the majority leader might invoke House Rule XXI, clause 2 d. This rule grants preference to the majority leader to end consideration of an appropriations bill in the Committee of the Whole by offering a successful "motion to rise.
Majority leaders engage in many other activities to promote policy success on the floor. They may, for instance, meet weekly or biweekly more frequently, if needed with committee chairs, ad hoc groups, or individual lawmakers to persuade them to support priority measures; woo lawmakers through the provision of various legislative services or rewards; coordinate vote counts with the party whip organization; propose changes in bills to attract support from wavering Members; reach out to lawmakers on the other side of the aisle to draft compromise legislation; craft "leadership amendments"designed to attract majority support; synchronize strategic activities with majority floor managers; and rally outside support for the party's legislative issues and political messages.
Majority leaders may also take on other functions relevant to floor action. To forge winning coalitions, for instance, they engage in deal-making, appeal to Members' party loyalty, enlist allies to overcome resistance to policy-party objectives, devote considerable time and energy in promoting consensus among colleagues, and work behind-the-scenes to get things done.
Majority leaders might also encourage party colleagues to deliver one-minute, morning hour, or special order speeches that spotlight the party's program and defend it against criticism from the other party.
There are two interconnected dimensions associated with this role: external and internal. When he became majority leader in , Thomas P. I was interviewed constantly. Periodically, they deliver major addresses in diverse forums, and write articles or "op ed" pieces on the major issues before the House. They meet with journalists and newspaper editors. Regularly, they give news briefings so-called pen and pad sessions to reporters on the schedule and agenda of the House, the priorities of the majority party, legislative-executive relations, and sundry other topics.
Internally, majority leaders are ready on the floor to defend their party, program, or President from criticism by the opposition. They participate in debate on measures and may make the closing argument on legislation.
Majority leaders rise to defend the prerogatives of individual Members; offer critiques and rebuttals to minority party initiatives; work with committee chairmen and others to coordinate and integrate the party's communication strategy; employ floor speeches "to set the tone on a newsworthy issue or provide the proscribed leadership perspective before a major vote"; 20 and may establish websites to provide information to House members and others. In brief, majority leaders generally function as their party's chief spokesperson on the floor and in other forums as well.
Sometimes the internal and external roles coincide when majority leaders introduce legislation, monitor executive branch actions, or champion proposals nationally. For example, Majority Leader Armey and another GOP colleague traveled the country in a "Scrap the Code Tour," a "national campaign to take the tax reform debate directly to the American people. Majority leaders regularly attend meetings at the White House—especially when the President is of the same party—to discuss issues before Congress, the Administrations's agenda, and political events generally.
For example, the joint bipartisan congressional leadership, including the House majority leader, may meet at the White House to discuss agenda priorities for the year.
There are instances as well where majority leaders can be sharp critics of the President. Majority leaders consult with executive branch officials plus scores of other individuals foreign dignitaries, governors, mayors, and so on. Majority leaders may also be active on international issues: brokering foreign policy compromises with the White House, championing the interests of certain nations, or criticizing some foreign governments.
In general, anyone who occupies the House's number two leadership post has strengthened leverage with the White House and greater public prominence on international issues.
Strategically, the role of majority leaders will be different depending on whether the President is of the same party. In general, majority leaders will strive to advance the goals and aspirations of their party's President in the Congress.
If the President is of the opposite party, then the procedural and political situation is more complicated. When should the majority leader cooperate with the President? When should he or she urge the House to reject Administration policies?
When should he or she propose alternatives to the President's priorities? In brief, the majority leader, the Speaker, and their other party colleagues need to determine when to function as the "governing" party in the House and when to act as the "loyal opposition.
To expedite the work of the House, a wide range of other responsibilities is typically performed by the majority leader. For example, the majority leader may ask unanimous consent that when the House adjourns that it meet again at a specific date and time. The majority leader may either appoint people to certain boards or commissions or be self-named to various commissions or boards. He or she may lead congressional delegations to different parts of the world.
The majority leader may act as Speaker pro tempore; offer resolutions affecting the operations of the House, such as establishing the hour of daily meeting of the House; perform various ceremonial duties; and support initiatives to revamp or reform the internal procedures and structures of the House.
In brief, the majority leader is responsible, along with other Members of the leadership, for insuring the orderly conduct of House business. The majority leader, former Speaker "Tip" O'Neill once said, "helps set policy and carries out the duties assigned to him by the Speaker. After all, legislative organization is party organization.
The majority party sets the agenda of the House and controls all committee and subcommittee chairmanships. Thus, along with other party leaders and Members, the majority leader works in numerous ways to help elect and reelect rank-and-file partisan colleagues, to forge unity on priority legislation, and to promote a favorable public image of the majority party.
Three activities of the majority leader illustrate these points. Majority leaders are typically energetic campaigners on behalf of their partisan colleagues. They assist incumbents and challengers in raising campaign funds, and they travel to scores of House districts to campaign with either incumbents or challengers of their party. Majority leaders develop computer-based campaign donor lists, so they can funnel campaign funds quickly to electoral contests; establish their own "leadership PACs" to raise money and then donate money from their political action committee to candidates of their party; help to raise large sums of money so campaign ads can be run on television and elsewhere in the months leading up to the November election; and coordinate their campaign activities with congressional, national, and state party campaign organizations and encourage outside groups and allies to raise money for the party.
Majority leaders assist in recruiting qualified challengers to take on incumbents. They promote get-out-the-vote drives, in part by devising strategies to energize their party's grassroots supporters.
In short, majority leaders are heavily engaged in the electoral campaigns of many party candidates. Their ultimate goals: to retain their majority status and, if possible, to increase the number in their ranks. Majority leaders may undertake a variety of actions to accomplish this goal. They develop legislative agendas and themes e.
These agendas may be posted on their Web sites. A key aim of this form of "message sending" is to animate and activate their electoral base to turn out on election day. Another objective is to develop electorally attractive ideas and proposals that may enable their party to retain or retake the House, the Senate, or even the presidency.
Still another is to advance policies that strengthen the nation, such as its global competitiveness in science, engineering, or other fields. The majority leader may help to organize "town meetings" in Members' districts, which publicize and promote the party's agenda or a specific priority, such as health care or tax cuts. He or she may sponsor party "retreats" to discuss issues and to evaluate the party's public image.
The majority leader may also distribute reports, memorandums, briefing books, and Web videos that highlight partisan campaign issues; conduct surveys of party colleagues to discern their priorities; organize "issue teams" or "task forces" composed of junior and senior lawmakers to formulate specific party programs; and form "message groups" or "theme teams" to map media strategies to foster favorable press coverage of party initiatives and negative views of the opposition party.
Sometimes the majority leader will attend partisan luncheons with Senators to better coordinate inter-chamber action on the party's legislative and message agenda. If a party is to maintain its majority, it is generally a good idea to minimize internal factional feuds or disagreements that may undermine its ability to govern the House. One majority leader explained this job as a "combination of evangelist, parish priest, and part-time prophet.
You have to be a peacemaker in the family. Aiding the majority leader in these efforts is his membership on various party units, such as policy committees or the committee-on-committees.
Majority leaders may also enlist the support of outsiders, such as lobbyists, to assist in building party cohesion. In fact, majority leaders may develop an external network of contacts in universities, think tanks, or consulting firms to function as an informal "brain trust" in policy development and in strategic analysis, suggesting how the majority party might mobilize the support required to enact their ideas into law.
Majority leaders, then, work to boost their party's fortunes internally and externally by acting as a political cheerleader, negotiator, consensus-builder, and peacemaker. Share this page. Follow Ballotpedia. Click here to follow election results! The majority leader of the lower chamber of a state legislature is in charge of the chamber's daily legislative operations. Depending on the state, the majority leader may preside over party caucuses, schedule daily legislative calendars, direct his or her party strategy, assemble party members for important votes, and serve as a party spokesperson.
The majority leader is often assisted in their role by whips , who work to enforce party discipline on votes deemed to be crucial by the party leadership and to ensure that members do not vote in a way not approved of by the party. Leadership at the state legislative level refers to a range of different positions, including senate presidents and presidents pro tempore , house and assembly speakers , and minority and majority leaders.
There are also middle- and lower-level leadership positions, such as whips, deputies, and floor leaders. Voters typically have little direct say in who holds these positions. Instead, the legislators themselves usually select their leaders. While the power and authority—and even the names—of leadership positions vary from chamber-to-chamber and state-to-state, leaders in state legislatures generally play influential roles in four, often interconnected, areas: the legislative process , elections , management , and career advancement.
Read more about state legislative leadership positions here. The majority leader of a lower legislative chamber manages the daily operations of the majority party on the state House or Assembly floor.
The majority leader acts as a spokesperson for the party's policy positions, schedules the daily calendar, and helps direct the party's overall legislative agenda. The majority leader is often assisted by whips , who help ensure that majority party members are present for votes during floor sessions and support the party's legislative agenda.
At the federal level, the House majority leader is elected by the party conference or caucus at the beginning of each Congress. At the state level, the state House or Assembly majority leader is either appointed by the speaker or elected by the members of the majority party's conference or caucus at the beginning of each legislative session.
The roles of minority and majority leaders evolved in the U. House of Representatives during the late 19th and early 20th centuries as a means of advancing party policy positions on the House floor and building unity among party members. The first majority leader of the U.
Over the next two decades, the majority leader ceased serving on committees and shifted from an appointed position to an elected position from among the majority party conference or caucus. Forty-six state legislatures operate with majority leaders in the lower chamber. In addition, the majority leader in Nebraska serves in the unicameral state legislature. The majority leader generally assumes the following duties: [1] [4].
At the federal level, the House majority leader does not serve on committees. The majority leader may participate in floor debates, but does not generally take a leading role. In some states, the majority leader serves as an ex officio member of all standing committees. Since the majority leader represents the constituency of his or her district, they can vote on all questions before the chamber.
At the federal level, the House majority leader is elected by the majority party conference or caucus at the beginning of each Congress. Congressional representatives who serve as the majority leader are not subject to term limits.
State legislators who serve as majority leaders are subject to any applicable term limits in their state. Ballotpedia features , encyclopedic articles written and curated by our professional staff of editors, writers, and researchers. Click here to contact our editorial staff, and click here to report an error. Click here to contact us for media inquiries, and please donate here to support our continued expansion. Share this page Follow Ballotpedia.
What's on your ballot? Jump to: navigation , search. In about 26 states, the lieutenant governor serves as the president of the Senate, and many of these duties are assumed by the president pro tem.
President pro tem of the Senate. The primary roles assigned to the president pro tem are to 1 preside over the Senate in the president's absence, 2 exercise the powers and duties of the president in his or her absence and 3 assume other duties as assigned by the president. Sometimes, this is an honorary position, with few substantive duties assigned.
In states where the lieutenant governor presides over the Senate, the president pro tem usually assumes duties associated with a president. Speaker of the House or Assembly. The speaker is the principal leader of the House or Assembly.
The speaker typically will 1 preside over the daily sessions of the House or Assembly, 2 preserve order in the chamber, 3 state parliamentary motions, 4 rule on parliamentary questions, 4 appoint committee chairs and members, 5 refer bills to committee, 6 sign legislation, writs and warrants and 7 act as the official spokesman for the House or Assembly. Speaker pro tem. The primary roles assigned to the speaker pro tem are to 1 preside over the House in the speaker's absence, 2 exercise the powers and duties of the speaker in his or her absence and 3 assume other duties as assigned by the speaker.
In some states, this is an honorary position, with few substantive duties assigned. Majority Leader.
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