80th United States Congress

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80th United States Congress
79th ←
→ 81st
USCapitol1956.jpg
United States Capitol (1956)

January 3, 1947 – January 3, 1949
Members96 senators
435 representatives
3 non-voting delegates
Senate MajorityRepublican
Senate PresidentVacant
House MajorityRepublican
House SpeakerJoseph W. Martin Jr. (R)
Sessions
1st: January 3, 1947 – December 19, 1947
Special: November 17, 1947 – December 19, 1947
2nd: January 6, 1948 – December 31, 1948
Special: July 26, 1948 – August 7, 1948

The 80th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1947, to January 3, 1949, during the first and second years of Harry S. Truman's presidency. The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the Sixteenth Census of the United States in 1940.

The Republicans won the majority in both chambers, marking the first time since the 71st Congress they held full control of Congress, and the first time since the 72nd Congress they held either of the two chambers. This also ended a 14-year Democratic overall federal government trifecta, dating back to the 73rd Congress.

Although the 80th Congress passed a total of 906 public bills,[1] President Truman nicknamed it the "Do Nothing Congress" and, during the 1948 election, campaigned as much against it as against his formal opponent, Thomas E. Dewey. The 80th Congress passed several significant pro-business bills, most famously the Marshall Plan and the Taft–Hartley Act, but it opposed most of Truman's Fair Deal bills.

Major events[]

  • January 3, 1947: Proceedings of Congress were televised for the first time.
  • March 12, 1947: In a Joint Session of Congress, President Truman proclaimed the Truman Doctrine.
  • July 18, 1947: The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands entered into a trusteeship with the United Nations and administered by the United States.
  • July 20, 1947: President Truman issued the second peacetime military draft in the United States amid increasing tensions with the Soviet Union.
  • November 24, 1947: The House of Representatives approved citations of contempt of Congress against the so-called Hollywood 10.
  • July 26, 1948:
    • Turnip Day Session begins, mandated by Truman on July 15, 1948
    • President Truman signed Executive Order 9981, ending racial segregation in the United States Armed Forces.
  • August 25, 1948: House Un-American Activities Committee held the first-ever televised congressional hearing: "Confrontation Day" between Whittaker Chambers and Alger Hiss.
  • November 2, 1948: United States general elections, 1948:
    • Presidential election: Harry Truman defeated Thomas E. Dewey, Henry A. Wallace, and Strom Thurmond;
    • Democrats regained control of the Senate and the House of Representatives

Major legislation[]

  • May 22, 1947: Assistance to Greece and Turkey Act (Truman Doctrine), Sess. 1, ch. 81, Pub.L. 80–75, 61 Stat. 103
  • June 23, 1947: Taft–Hartley Act, Sess. 1, ch. 120, Pub.L. 80–101, 61 Stat. 136
  • July 18, 1947: Presidential Succession Act of 1947, Sess. 1, ch. 264, Pub.L. 80–199, 61 Stat. 380
  • July 26, 1947: National Security Act of 1947, Sess. 1, ch. 343, Pub.L. 80–253, 61 Stat. 495
  • August 7, 1947: , Sess. 1, ch. 513, Pub.L. 80–382, 61 Stat. 913
  • January 27, 1948: United States Information and Educational Exchange Act, Sess. 2, ch. 36, Pub.L. 80–402, 62 Stat. 6
  • April 3, 1948: Foreign Assistance Act (Marshall Plan), Pub.L. 80–472, Sess. 2, ch. 169, 62 Stat. 137
  • April 3, 1948: Greek-Turkish Assistance Act of 1948 (Marshall Plan), Sess. 2, ch. 169, Pub.L. 80–472, Title III, 62 Stat. 157
  • May 26, 1948: Civil Air Patrol Act, Sess. 2, ch. 349, Pub.L. 80–557, 62 Stat. 274
  • June 12, 1948: Women's Armed Services Integration Act, Sess. 2, ch. 449, Pub.L. 80–625, 62 Stat. 356
  • June 17, 1948: , Sess. 2, ch. 491, Pub.L. 80–662, 62 Stat. 472
  • June 25, 1948: Codify and enact into law Title 3 of the United States Code – The President, Sess. 2, ch. 644, Pub.L. 80–771, 62 Stat. 672
  • June 28, 1948: , Pub.L. 80–806, 62 Stat. 1070
  • June 30, 1948: Federal Water Pollution Control Act, Sess. 2, ch. 758, Pub.L. 80–845, 62 Stat. 1155
  • July 3, 1948: War Claims Act of 1948, Sess. 2, ch. 826, Pub.L. 80–896, 62 Stat. 1240
  • July 3, 1948: Agricultural Act of 1948, Sess. 2, ch. 827, Pub.L. 80–897, 62 Stat. 1247

Constitutional amendments[]

  • March 21, 1947: Approved an amendment to the United States Constitution setting a term limit for election and overall time of service to the office of President of the United States, and submitted it to the state legislatures for ratification
    • Amendment was later ratified on February 27, 1951, becoming the Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution

Party summary[]

House Chaplain Bernard Braskamp delivering the opening prayer for the 80th Congress, 1947

Senate[]

Party
(shading shows control)
Total Vacant
Democratic
(D)
Progressive
(P)
Republican
(R)
End of previous congress 53 1 42 96 0
Begin 45 0 51 96 0
End
Final voting share 46.9% 0.0% 53.1%
Beginning of next congress 54 0 42 96 0

House of Representatives[]

From the beginning to the end of this Congress, there was no net change in party power. The Democrats lost one seat, which remained vacant until the next Congress.

Affiliation Party
(Shading indicates majority caucus)
Total
Republican Democratic American Labor Progressive Vacant
End of previous Congress 191 236 1 1 429 6
Begin 245 187 1 0 433 2
End 242 186 2 430 5
Final voting share 56.7% 43.1% 0.2% 0.0%
Beginning of the next Congress 171 262 1 0 434 1

Leadership[]

Section contents: Senate: Majority (R), Minority (D)House: Majority (R), Minority (D)

Senate[]

  • President: Vacant
  • President pro tempore: Arthur Vandenberg (R)

Majority (Republican) leadership[]

  • Majority leader: Wallace H. White Jr.
  • Majority whip: Kenneth S. Wherry
  • Republican Conference Chairman: Eugene Millikin
  • Republican Conference Secretary: Milton Young
  • National Senatorial Committee Chair: Owen Brewster
  • Policy Committee Chairman: Robert A. Taft

Minority (Democratic) leadership[]

  • Minority leader: Alben W. Barkley
  • Minority whip: Scott W. Lucas
  • Democratic Caucus Secretary: Brien McMahon
  • Policy Committee Chairman: Alben W. Barkley

House of Representatives[]

  • Speaker: Joseph W. Martin Jr. (R)

Majority (Republican) leadership[]

  • Majority Leader: Charles A. Halleck
  • Republican Whip: Leslie C. Arends
  • Republican Conference Chairman: Roy O. Woodruff
  • Republican Campaign Committee Chairman: Leonard W. Hall

Minority (Democratic) leadership[]

  • Minority Leader: Sam Rayburn
  • Democratic Whip: John W. McCormack
  • Democratic Caucus Chairman: Aime Forand
  • Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Michael J. Kirwan

Caucuses[]

  • House Democratic Caucus
  • Senate Democratic Caucus

Members[]

Senate[]

Senators are popularly elected statewide every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election, In this Congress, Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1948; Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1950; and Class 1 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1952.

Percentage of members from each party by state at the opening of the 80th Congress, ranging from dark blue (most Democratic) to dark red (most Republican).

House of Representatives[]

The names of members of the House of Representatives elected statewide at-large, are preceded by an "At-Large," and the names of those elected from districts, whether plural or single member, are preceded by their district numbers.

The congressional district numbers are linked to articles describing the district itself. Since the boundaries of the districts have changed often and substantially, the linked article may only describe the district as it exists today, and not as it was at the time of this Congress.

Changes in membership[]

The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress

Senate[]

There were 3 deaths, 2 resignations, and one lost mid-term election.

State
(class)
Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[a]
Mississippi
(1)
Theodore G. Bilbo (D) Died August 21, 1947.
Successor was elected November 17, 1947.
John C. Stennis (D) November 17, 1947
Louisiana
(3)
John H. Overton (D) Died May 14, 1948.
Successor was appointed to continue the term.
William C. Feazel (D) May 18, 1948
South Dakota
(2)
Harlan J. Bushfield (R) Died September 27, 1948.
Successor was appointed to finish the term.
Vera C. Bushfield (R) October 6, 1948
South Dakota
(2)
Vera C. Bushfield (R) Interim appointee resigned December 26, 1948.
Successor was appointed to finish the term.
Karl E. Mundt (R) December 31, 1948
Louisiana
(3)
William C. Feazel (D) Interim appointee retired when successor elected.
Successor was December 31, 1948.
Russell B. Long (D) December 31, 1948
North Carolina
(2)
William B. Umstead (D) Interim appointee lost election to finish the term.
Successor was December 31, 1948.
J. Melville Broughton (D) December 31, 1948

House of Representatives[]

There were 9 deaths and 7 resignations.

District Vacated by Reason for change Successor Date of successor's
formal installation[a]
Alabama
8th
Vacant John Sparkman resigned in previous Congress after being elected to the US Senate having been re-elected as well. Robert E. Jones Jr. (D) Seated January 28, 1947
Wisconsin
2nd
Vacant Representative Robert Kirkland Henry died during previous Congress having been previously re-elected. Glenn Robert Davis (R) Seated April 22, 1947
Washington
3rd
Fred B. Norman (R) Died April 18, 1947 Russell V. Mack (R) Seated June 7, 1947
Pennsylvania
8th
Charles L. Gerlach (R) Died May 5, 1947 Franklin H. Lichtenwalter (R) Seated September 9, 1947
Maryland
3rd
Thomas D'Alesandro Jr. (D) Resigned May 16, 1947, after being elected Mayor of Baltimore Edward Garmatz (D) Seated July 15, 1947
Michigan
11th
Frederick Van Ness Bradley (R) Died May 24, 1947 Charles E. Potter (R) Seated August 26, 1947
Texas
9th
Joseph J. Mansfield (D) Died July 12, 1947 Clark W. Thompson (D) Seated August 23, 1947
Texas
16th
R. Ewing Thomason (D) Resigned July 31, 1947, after being appointed as a judge of the US District Court for the Western District of Texas Kenneth M. Regan (D) Seated August 23, 1947
Massachusetts
9th
Charles L. Gifford (R) Died August 23, 1947 Donald W. Nicholson (R) Seated November 18, 1947
Indiana
10th
Raymond S. Springer (R) Died August 28, 1947 Ralph Harvey (R) Seated November 4, 1947
Ohio
4th
Robert Franklin Jones (R) Resigned September 2, 1947, to become a member of the Federal Communications Commission William Moore McCulloch (R) Seated November 4, 1947
New York
14th
Leo F. Rayfiel (D) Resigned September 13, 1947, having been appointed a judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York Abraham J. Multer (D) Seated November 4, 1947
Illinois
21st
George Evan Howell (R) Resigned October 5, 1947, after being appointed judge of the US Court of Claims Vacant until next Congress
Virginia
4th
Patrick H. Drewry (D) Died December 21, 1947 Watkins Moorman Abbitt (D) Seated February 17, 1948
New York
24th
Benjamin J. Rabin (D) Resigned December 31, 1947 Leo Isacson (AL) Seated February 17, 1948
Kentucky
2nd
Earle Clements (D) Resigned January 6, 1948, to become Governor of Kentucky John A. Whitaker (D) Seated April 17, 1948
Kentucky
9th
John M. Robsion (R) Died February 17, 1948 William Lewis (R) Seated April 24, 1948
Missouri
10th
Orville Zimmerman (D) Died April 7, 1948 Paul C. Jones (D) Seated November 2, 1948
Virginia
6th
J. Lindsay Almond (D) Resigned April 17, 1948, having been elected attorney General of Virginia Clarence G. Burton (D) Seated November 2, 1948
Illinois
7th
Thomas L. Owens (R) Died June 7, 1948 Vacant until next Congress
Indiana
6th
Noble J. Johnson (R) Resigned July 1, 1948, after being appointed as judge of US Court of Customs & Patent Appeals Vacant until next Congress
Texas
15th
Milton H. West (D) Died October 28, 1948 Lloyd Bentsen (D) Seated December 4, 1948
New York
7th
John J. Delaney (D) Died November 18, 1948 Vacant until next Congress
South Dakota
1st
Karl E. Mundt (R) Resigned December 30, 1948, after being appointed to the U.S. Senate having already been elected. Vacant until next Congress

Committees[]

Lists of committees and their party leaders, for members (House and Senate) of the committees and their assignments, go into the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of the article and click on the link (4 links), in the directory after the pages of terms of service, you will see the committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and after the committee pages, you will see the House/Senate committee assignments in the directory, on the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.

Senate[]

  • Agriculture and Forestry (Chairman: Arthur Capper; Ranking Member: Elmer Thomas)
  • Appropriations (Chairman: Styles Bridges; Ranking Member: Kenneth McKellar)
  • Armed Services (Chairman: Chan Gurney; Ranking Member: Millard E. Tydings)
  • Banking and Currency (Chairman: Charles W. Tobey; Ranking Member: Robert F. Wagner)
  • Civil Service (Chairman: William Langer; Ranking Member: Dennis Chavez)
  • District of Columbia (Chairman: C. Douglass Buck; Ranking Member: N/A)
  • Expenditures in Executive Departments (Chairman: George D. Aiken; Ranking Member: John L. McClellan)
  • Finance (Chairman: Eugene D. Millikin; Ranking Member: Walter F. George)
  • Foreign Relations (Chairman: Arthur H. Vandenberg; Ranking Member: Tom Connally)
  • Interstate and Foreign Commerce (Chairman: Wallace H. White Jr.; Ranking Member: Edwin C. Johnson)
  • Investigate the National Defense Program (Special) (Chairman: Owen Brewster)
  • Judiciary (Chairman: Alexander Wiley; Ranking Member: Pat McCarran)
  • Labor and Public Welfare (Chairman: Robert A. Taft; Ranking Member: Elbert D. Thomas)
  • (Special)
  • Public Lands (Chairman: Hugh A. Butler; Ranking Member: Carl A. Hatch)
  • Public Works (Chairman: W. Chapman Revercomb; Ranking Member: John H. Overton)
  • (Special)
  • Rules and Administration (Chairman: C. Wayland Brooks; Ranking Member: Carl Hayden)
  • (Special) (Chairman: Kenneth S. Wherry)
  • Whole

House of Representatives[]

  • Agriculture (Chairman: Clifford R. Hope; Ranking Member: John W. Flannagan Jr.)
  • Appropriations (Chairman: John Taber; Ranking Member: Clarence Cannon)
  • Armed Services (Chairman: Walter G. Andrews; Ranking Member: Carl Vinson)
  • Banking and Currency (Chairman: Jesse P. Wolcott; Ranking Member: Brent Spence)
  • District of Columbia (Chairman: Everett M. Dirksen; Ranking Member: John L. McMillan)
  • Education and Labor (Chairman: Fred A. Hartley Jr.; Ranking Member: John Lesinski)
  • Expenditures in the Executive Departments (Chairman: Clare E. Hoffman; Ranking Member: Carter Manasco)
  • Foreign Affairs (Chairman: Charles Aubrey Eaton; Ranking Member: Sol Bloom)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Charles Aubrey Eaton)
  • House Administration (Chairman: Karl M. LeCompte; Ranking Member: Mary Teresa Norton)
  • (Select) (Chairman: August H. Andresen)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Forest A. Harness)
  • Interstate and Foreign Commerce (Chairman: Charles A. Wolverton; Ranking Member: Clarence F. Lea)
  • Judiciary (Chairman: Earl C. Michener; Ranking Member: Emanuel Celler)
  • Merchant Marine and Fisheries (Chairman: Alvin F. Weichel; Ranking Member: S. Otis Bland)
  • (Select) (Chairman: N/A; Ranking Member: N/A)
  • Post Office and Civil Service (Chairman: Edward H. Rees; Ranking Member: Tom J. Murray)
  • Public Lands (Chairman: Richard J. Welch; Ranking Member: Andrew L. Somers)
  • Public Works (Chairman: George Anthony Dondero; Ranking Member: Joseph J. Mansfield then William M. Whittington)
  • Rules (Chairman: Leo E. Allen; Ranking Member: Adolph J. Sabath)
  • (Select) (Chairman: Walter C. Ploeser)
  • Standards of Official Conduct
  • Un-American Activities (Chairman: J. Parnell Thomas; Ranking Member: John S. Wood)
  • Veterans' Affairs (Chairman: Edith Nourse Rogers; Ranking Member: John E. Rankin)
  • Ways and Means (Chairman: Harold Knutson; Ranking Member: Robert L. Doughton)
  • Whole

Joint committees[]

  • Atomic Energy (Chairman: Sen. Bourke B. Hickenlooper; Vice Chairman: Rep. W. Sterling Cole)
  • Conditions of Indian Tribes (Special)
  • Economic (Chairman: Sen. Robert A. Taft; Vice Chairman: Rep. Jesse P. Wolcott)
  • Housing
  • The Library (Chairman: Sen. C. Wayland Brooks)
  • Printing (Chairman: Sen. William E. Jenner; Vice Chairman: Rep. Karl M. LeCompte)
  • (Chairman: Sen. Harry F. Byrd; Vice Chairman: Rep. Robert L. Doughton)
  • Taxation (Chairman: Rep. Harold Knutson; Vice Chairman: Sen. Eugene D. Millikin)

Employees[]

Legislative branch agency directors[]

  • Architect of the Capitol: David Lynn
  • Attending Physician of the United States Congress: George Calver
  • Comptroller General of the United States: Lindsay C. Warren
  • Librarian of Congress: Luther H. Evans
  • Public Printer of the United States: Augustus E. Giegengack, until 1948
    • John J. Deviny, from 1948

Senate[]

House of Representatives[]

  • Chaplain: James Shera Montgomery (Methodist)
  • Clerk:
  • Doorkeeper:
  • Parliamentarian: Lewis Deschler
  • Postmaster: , until October 15, 1948; vacant thereafter
  • Reading Clerks: (D) and (R)
  • Sergeant at Arms: William F. Russell

See also[]

  • United States elections, 1946 (elections leading to this Congress)
    • United States Senate elections, 1946
    • United States House of Representatives elections, 1946
  • United States elections, 1948 (elections during this Congress, leading to the next Congress)
    • 1948 United States presidential election
    • United States Senate elections, 1948
    • United States House of Representatives elections, 1948
  • Turnip Day Session (July–August 1948)

Notes[]

  1. ^ a b When seated or oath administered, not necessarily when service began.

External links[]

  • House of Representatives Session Calendar for the 80th Congress (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on September 20, 2018. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  • Official Congressional Directory for the 80th Congress, 1st Session.
  • Official Congressional Directory for the 80th Congress, 1st Session (Revision).
  • Official Congressional Directory for the 80th Congress, 2nd Session.
  • Official Congressional Directory for the 80th Congress, 2nd Session (Revision).
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