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61-612: The act was named after its congressional sponsors, Senator George F. Edmunds of Vermont and Congressman John Randolph Tucker of Virginia. In President Grover Cleveland's annual address to Congress in December 1885, he emotionally discussed the issue of polygamy in Utah: The strength, the perpetuity, and the destiny of the nation rest upon our homes, established by the law of God, guarded by parental care, regulated by parental authority, and sanctified by parental love. These are not

122-499: A colleague that among all the Republicans, "Edmunds made the most impression upon me. I couldn't help admiring his clear and incisive way of putting a question, although it appeared to me that his manner is occasionally very irritating. This manner of his is very much that of a lawyer employed as counsel in a case, who therefore makes ex parte statements, and thinks it fair to make all manner of allegations." His closest friend in

183-530: A groundswell for Edmunds if the two stronger candidates deadlocked. Revelations about Edmunds's legal work for railroads and corporations while sitting in the Senate prevented Edmunds from attaining wide support from reformers. On the first ballot he received 93 votes, once again carrying Vermont and Massachusetts, along with Rhode Island, a significant minority in New York, and scattered delegates from throughout

244-702: A law be passed to prevent the importation of Mormons into the country. The Act was passed by the Senate in January 1886 by a vote of 38–7. It was passed by the House via a voice vote in January 1887. President Cleveland refused to sign the bill but did not veto it, which meant that the Act became law on March 3, 1887. The act disincorporated both the LDS Church and the Perpetual Emigration Fund on

305-476: A need for the president pro tempore to preside came in September 2001, following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Due to heightened security concerns during President George W. Bush 's September 20 address to Congress, Vice President Dick Cheney stayed at another location as a designated survivor , and President Pro Tempore Robert Byrd presided in his absence. President pro tempore Patrick Leahy presided over

366-676: A niece of George Perkins Marsh . They had two daughters. Among Edmunds's honors were an honorary Master of Arts from the University of Vermont and honorary LL.D. degrees from Middlebury College , Dartmouth College and the University of Vermont. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 1895. Edmunds Elementary and Middle Schools in Burlington, which share a complex, opened as

427-406: A senator of the minority party who has previously served as president pro tempore. It has been held by Strom Thurmond (R- South Carolina ) (2001–2003), Robert Byrd (D- West Virginia ) (2003–2007), Ted Stevens (R- Alaska ) (2007–2009), Patrick Leahy (D- Vermont ) (2015–2021), and Chuck Grassley (R- Iowa ) (2021–present). From 2009 to 2015, no senator met the requirements for it. The position

488-434: A session of Congress. The first president pro tempore, John Langdon , was elected on April 6, 1789, serving four separate terms between 1789 and 1793. "More than twelve senators held the office during the Senate's first decade", presiding over sessions, signing legislation, and performing routine administrative tasks. Whenever the office of the vice presidency was vacant, as it was on ten occasions between 1812 and 1889,

549-513: A true Half-Breed must support civil service reform. Indeed, Blaine's inclinations in the late 1870s were closer to that of the Stalwarts, evident in his hostility towards civil service reform and the policies pursued by Half-Breed Rutherford B. Hayes . During the campaign, Edmunds stated: It is my deliberate opinion that Senator Blaine acts as the attorney of Jay Gould . Whenever [Allen G. Thurman] and I have settled upon legislation to bring

610-580: Is a privately owned residence and farm, and marked by a Vermont Historic Sites Commission sign. President pro tempore of the United States Senate [REDACTED] [REDACTED] The president pro tempore of the United States Senate (often shortened to president pro tem ) is the second-highest-ranking official of the United States Senate , after the vice president . According to Article One , Section Three of

671-527: Is the designated legal recipient of various reports to the Senate, including War Powers Act reports under which they, jointly with the speaker, may require the president to call Congress back into session. The officeholder is an ex officio member of various boards and commissions. With the secretary and sergeant at arms , the president pro tempore maintains order in Senate portions of the Capitol and Senate buildings. The office of president pro tempore

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732-483: The Democratic Party . To those southerners opposed to any federal role in protecting blacks' right to vote, Edmunds seemed the epitome of Yankee evil. One southern correspondent in 1880 wrote, "When I look at that man sitting almost alone in the Senate, isolated in his gloom of hate and bitterness, stern, silent, watchful, suspicious and pitiless, I am reminded of the worst types of Puritan character... You see

793-594: The United States Constitution , the vice president of the United States is the president of the Senate (despite not being a senator), and the Senate must choose a president pro tempore to act in the vice president's absence. The president pro tempore is elected by the Senate as a whole, usually by a resolution which is adopted by unanimous consent without a formal vote. The Constitution does not specify who can serve in this position, but

854-540: The acting president had the Electoral College vote not been certified by March 4, 1877; Congress certified Rutherford B. Hayes as the winner of the Electoral College vote on March 2. The president pro tempore and the speaker of the House were removed from the presidential line of succession in 1886. Both were restored to it in 1947, though this time with the president pro tempore following

915-462: The chamber's presiding officer , the president pro tempore is authorized to perform certain duties in the absence of the vice president, including ruling on points of order . Additionally, under the 25th Amendment to the Constitution , the president pro tempore and the speaker are the two authorities to whom declarations must be transmitted that the president is unable to perform the duties of

976-425: The second impeachment of Donald Trump in 2021. The Chief Justice of the United States had presided over all previous presidential impeachment trials, as prescribed by the Constitution, but in this case Trump was no longer a sitting president when the trial began. While the president pro tempore does have other official duties, the holders of the office have, like the vice president, over time ceased presiding over

1037-675: The 19th century, the Senate was without both a president and a president pro tempore: When President Andrew Johnson , who had no vice president, was impeached and tried in 1868, Senate President pro tempore Benjamin Franklin Wade was next in line to the presidency. Wade's radicalism is thought by many historians to be a major reason why the Senate, which did not want to see Wade in the White House , acquitted Johnson. Vice President Henry Wilson died on November 22, 1875. Senator Thomas W. Ferry , being President pro tempore of

1098-758: The Committee on Pensions from 1869 to 1873, the Committee on the Judiciary from 1872 to 1879 and again from 1881 to 1891, the Committee on Private Land Claims from 1879 to 1881 and the Committee on Foreign Relations in 1881. He was President pro tempore of the Senate from 1883 to 1885 and chairman of the Republican Conference from 1885 to 1891. While serving in Congress he continued to practice law, as did many other members of Congress at

1159-498: The Democrats proposed their own candidate. As a result of this three-way split, no individual received a majority vote. It took four months for a compromise solution to emerge: Democrat Augustus Bacon served for a single day, August 14, 1911, during the vice president's absence. Thereafter, Bacon and four Republicans— Charles Curtis , Jacob Gallinger , Henry Cabot Lodge , and Frank Brandegee —alternated as president pro tempore for

1220-549: The Pacific Railroad to terms of equity with the government, up has jumped Mr. James G. Blaine musket in hand, from behind the breastworks of Jay Gould’s lobby to fire in our faces. Edmunds' refusal to support Blaine consequentially led to immense opposition from Republicans who pushed to deny him re-election in the 1886 midterms. A supporter of Blaine said of the Vermont senator: Do you believe, [Edmunds] sulked during

1281-423: The Senate has always elected one of its current members. Unlike the vice president, the president pro tempore cannot cast a tie-breaking vote when the Senate is evenly divided. The president pro tempore has enjoyed many privileges and some limited powers. During the vice president's absence, the president pro tempore is empowered to preside over Senate sessions. Except when necessary or to highlight important votes,

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1342-428: The Senate on a daily basis, owing to the mundane and ceremonial nature of the position. Furthermore, as the president pro tempore is usually the most senior senator of the majority party, they most likely also chair a major Senate committee and have other significant demands on their time. Therefore, the president pro tempore has less time now than in the past to preside daily over the Senate. Instead, junior senators from

1403-491: The Senate, was next in the line of presidential succession , and remained so until March 4, 1877. As acting president of the senate, he presided over the 1876 impeachment trial of U.S. Secretary of War William Belknap and the meetings of the Electoral Commission created by Congress to resolve the disputed 1876 presidential election . Still president pro tempore at that time, he would have temporally become

1464-604: The State Senate, and whose residence in Burlington was on the west side of the state. Edmunds subsequently won reelection in 1868, 1874, 1880 and 1886, and served from April 1866 until resigning in November 1891. In the Senate, Edmunds took an active part in the attempt to impeach President Andrew Johnson in 1868, having helped pass the Tenure of Office Act to rebuke Johnson. Although considering himself devoted to

1525-504: The U.S. Senate in 1866, filling the vacancy caused by the death of Solomon Foot . He was subsequently elected by the Vermont General Assembly , and reelected in 1868, 1874, 1880, and 1886 before resigning in November 1891. As a longtime member of the U.S. Senate, he served in a variety of leadership posts, including chairman of the committees on Pensions, the Judiciary , Private Land Claims , and Foreign Relations . He

1586-562: The West. His support declined, however, and the nomination went to Blaine on the fourth ballot. After the convention, many Edmunds supporters backed Democratic nominee Grover Cleveland , earning them the nickname " Mugwumps ". Edmunds himself refused support for Blaine, who ultimately narrowly lost the general election. Although Blaine was the leader of the Half-Breeds, he was viewed with suspicion and distrust by Edmunds, who believed that

1647-639: The act scanned from the U.S. Statutes at large, linked elsewhere on this page.) In 1890 the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the seizure of Church property under the Edmunds–Tucker Act in Late Corp. of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints v. United States . This act was repealed in 1978. George F. Edmunds George Franklin Edmunds (February 1, 1828 – February 27, 1919)

1708-453: The campaign of 1884, and refused to assist the party that gave him all the eminence he ever had as a statesman, and thereby on account of his personal dislike to James G. Blaine refused to contribute his support. . . There are honest, intelligent Republicans who believe he is guilty. When the election drew closer, newspapers covering the race became either increasingly supportive or opposing towards Edmunds. The Vermont Watchman , which

1769-634: The chamber for many years was the ranking Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, Allen G. Thurman of Ohio . Edmunds and Thurman shared similar reformist attitudes. When Edmunds ran for president in 1884, the other candidates included the eventual Republican nominee, James G. Blaine , a Half-Breed . During the campaign, Edmunds touted his alliance with Thurman, which in turn was cited as a positive quality by cartoonist Thomas Nast , an anti-Blaine Mugwump and illustrator for Harper's Weekly . At Thurman's death in 1895, Edmunds spoke highly of

1830-543: The city's high school in 1900 on land donated by Edmunds, and became a middle and elementary grades facility in 1964. Mount Rainier 's Edmunds Glacier and the town of Edmonds, Washington (despite the spelling) are named for him. The Vermont Historical Society maintains the George F. Edmunds Fund, which awards an annual prize for student research and writing on Vermont history. His birthplace in Richmond, Vermont

1891-810: The commissioners, voting for Republicans Rutherford B. Hayes and William A. Wheeler . He was the author of the Edmunds Act against polygamy in Utah and the Sherman Antitrust Act to limit monopolies . In 1882 President Chester A. Arthur nominated Senator Roscoe Conkling to replace the retiring Ward Hunt as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court . When Conkling declined, Arthur chose Edmunds, who also declined. The appointment ultimately went to Samuel Blatchford . Edmunds served as chairman of

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1952-426: The election of another. Since the enactment of the current Presidential Succession Act in 1947, the president pro tempore is third in the line of succession to the presidency , after the vice president and the speaker of the House of Representatives . The current president pro tempore of the U.S. Senate is Patty Murray of Washington . The most senior senator (after Dianne Feinstein 's death in September 2023) in

2013-699: The former Ohio senator as "brave in his convictions." Edmunds was a candidate for president at the 1880 Republican National Convention . Nominated by Frederick H. Billings , he received 34 votes on the first ballot, carrying Vermont and Massachusetts. His support remained at 31 or 32 votes through the 29th ballot, after which his supporters began to trend towards eventual nominee James A. Garfield . In 1884, Republicans who favored civil service reform, including Carl Schurz , George William Curtis , Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge , supported Edmunds for President over incumbent President Chester A. Arthur and former Senator James G. Blaine , hoping to build

2074-425: The grounds that they fostered polygamy . The act prohibited the practice of polygamy and punished it with a fine of from $ 500 to $ 800 and imprisonment of up to five years. It dissolved the corporation of the church and directed the confiscation by the federal government of all church properties valued over a limit of $ 50,000. The act was enforced by the U.S. Marshal and a host of deputies. The act: (See text of

2135-503: The homes of polygamy. . . . There is no feature of this practice or the system which sanctions it which is not opposed to all that is of value in our institutions. There should be no relaxation in the firm but just execution of the law now in operation, and I should be glad to approve such further discreet legislation as will rid the country of this blot upon its fair fame. Since the people upholding polygamy in our Territories are reenforced by immigration from other lands, I recommend that

2196-472: The impress of the purer persecuting spirit that burned witches, drove out Roger Williams , hounded Jonathan Edwards for doing his sacred duty, maligned Jefferson , and like a toad squatted at the ear of the Constitution it had failed to pervert." In spite of contempt from many Democratic colleagues, Edmunds formed friendships from across the aisle. One Democrat with no reason to appreciate him wrote

2257-415: The majority Senate Democratic Caucus and the first woman to hold the position, she was sworn in on January 3, 2023, at the start of the 118th Congress . Although the position is in some ways analogous to the speaker of the House of Representatives , the powers of the president pro tempore are far more limited. In the Senate, most power rests with the majority leader and other individual senators, but as

2318-410: The majority party are designated acting president pro tempore to preside over the Senate. This allows junior senators to learn proper parliamentary procedure. The acting president pro tempore is usually reappointed daily by the president pro tempore. In June 1963, because of the illness of president pro tempore Carl Hayden , Lee Metcalf was designated permanent acting president pro tempore. No term

2379-515: The office garnered heightened importance, for although he did not assume the vice presidency, the president pro tempore stood next in line for the presidency. Before the ratification of the Twenty-fifth Amendment in 1967, a vacancy in the vice presidency could be filled only by a regular election; several individuals who served during these vacancies were referred to informally as "acting vice president". On three occasions during

2440-419: The office, or is able to resume doing so. The president pro tempore is third in the line of presidential succession , following the vice president and the speaker, and consequently is one of the few members of Congress entitled to a full-time security detail. Additional duties include appointment of various congressional officers, certain commissions, advisory boards, and committees. The president pro tempore

2501-525: The principles of the Republican Party, like most congressional " Half-Breeds ", Edmunds staunchly supported civil service reform . This was opposed by the conservative " Stalwart " faction, who supported maintaining the spoils system as a way to reward political supporters and punish political enemies. Edmunds was influential in providing for the electoral commission to decide the disputed presidential election of 1876 and served as one of

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2562-411: The remainder of that Congress's session. In January 1945, the Senate elected Kenneth McKellar , who at the time was the senator with the longest continuous service , as its president pro tempore. Since then, it has become customary for the majority party's most senior member to hold this position. Patty Murray was elected president pro tempore in January 2023, the first woman to hold the position. At

2623-414: The second president pro tempore emeritus. In 2007, Byrd returned as president pro tempore, and Stevens became the third president pro tempore emeritus, when the Democrats gained control of the Senate. Although a president pro tempore emeritus has no official duties, they are entitled to an increase in staff, and advise party leaders on the functions of the Senate. The office's accompanying budget increase

2684-427: The speaker. William P. Frye served as president pro tempore from 1896 to 1911 (the 54th through the 62nd Congresses), a tenure longer than anyone else. He resigned from the position due to ill health shortly before his death. Electing his successor proved difficult, as Senate Republicans, then in the majority, were split between progressive and conservative factions, each promoting its own candidate. Likewise,

2745-599: The state legislature soundly re-elected him. At Arthur's funeral in 1886, Edmunds extended his hand to Blaine. Blaine, recalling the 1884 campaign, refused to shake it. Edmunds resigned from the Senate in 1891 in order to start a law practice in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . He later retired to Pasadena, California where he died on February 27, 1919. He was buried at Green Mount Cemetery in Burlington . In 1852 Edmunds married Susan Marsh Lyman (1831–1916),

2806-603: The students who studied under him was Russell S. Taft , who later served as Lieutenant Governor and as Chief Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court . A Republican , he was elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 1854. He served until 1860, and was Speaker from 1857 to 1860. He moved to the Vermont Senate in 1861, where he served until 1862. While in the State Senate, Edmunds

2867-672: The time of her election, she was the second-most senior member of the majority party. Historically, presidents pro tempore would preside over any joint session of the United States Congress alongside the speaker of the house when there was a vacancy in the vice presidency. With the ratification of the Twenty-fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution in 1967, vacancies in the vice presidency became much less common. However,

2928-422: The time. He held retainers from railroads and other corporations, including those which could be affected by Senate action. In 1921, former Senator Richard F. Pettigrew published an autobiography in which he condemned Edmunds as a "senatorial bribe-taker" and "distinctly dishonest" for having accepted corporate retainers while a senator. An acerbic debater, he often favored the status quo or slow progress. He

2989-399: The vice president and the president pro tempore rarely preside; instead, the duty of presiding officer is rotated among junior U.S. senators of the majority party to give them experience in parliamentary procedure . Since 1890, the most senior U.S. senator in the majority party has generally (though not always) been chosen to be president pro tempore and holds the office continuously until

3050-535: Was admitted to the bar as soon as he reached the minimum required age of 21. He practiced in Burlington and became active in local politics and government. Before entering the Senate, he served in a number of high-profile positions in state government, including Speaker of the Vermont House of Representatives and President pro tempore of the Vermont State Senate . Edmunds was appointed to

3111-598: Was also the leader of the Senate Republicans as President pro tempore of the Senate and chairman of the Republican Conference . Edmunds was an unsuccessful candidate for president at the 1880 and 1884 Republican National Conventions. After leaving the Senate he practiced law in Philadelphia . Edmunds later lived in retirement in Pasadena, California , where he died in 1919. He was buried at Green Mount Cemetery in Burlington, Vermont . George F. Edmunds

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3172-555: Was an American attorney and Republican politician who represented the state of Vermont in the United States Senate from 1866 to 1891. He was a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 1880 and 1884 as a leading representative of New England and of the faction favoring civil service reform . Edmunds was born in Richmond, Vermont and began to study law while still a teenager; he proved an adept student, and

3233-567: Was born in Richmond, Vermont on February 1, 1828, the son of Ebenezer Edmunds and Naomi (Briggs) Edmunds. He attended the local schools and was privately tutored. Edmunds began studying law as a teenager, spending time in both the office of his brother-in-law Aaron B. Maynard and the office of David A. Smalley and Edward J. Phelps . He was admitted to the bar as soon as he was eligible in 1849. He practiced in Burlington , and became active in politics by serving in local offices including Town Meeting Moderator. While practicing law, one of

3294-651: Was chosen to serve as President pro tempore . After the death of U.S. Senator Solomon Foot in March 1866, Governor Paul Dillingham was expected to appoint someone from the west side of the Green Mountains, in keeping with the Republican Party's Mountain Rule . He first considered former Governor J. Gregory Smith . When Smith indicated that he would not accept, Dillingham turned to Edmunds, who had favorably impressed Dillingham during their service together in

3355-592: Was created for Thurmond when the Democratic Party regained a majority in the Senate in June 2001. With the change in party control, Democrat Robert Byrd of West Virginia replaced Thurmond as president pro tempore, reclaiming a position he had previously held from 1989 to 1995 and briefly in January 2001. Thurmond's retirement from the Senate on January 3, 2003, coincided with a change from Democratic to Republican control, making Stevens president pro tempore and Byrd

3416-410: Was elected deputy president pro tempore in 1987, because of the illness of president pro tempore John C. Stennis , similar to Metcalf's earlier designation as permanent acting president pro tempore. The office has remained vacant since 1989 and no senator other than Humphrey and Mitchell has held it since its creation. Since 2001, the honorary title of president pro tempore emeritus has been given to

3477-403: Was established by the Constitution of the United States in 1789. Between 1792 and 1886, the president pro tempore was second in the line of presidential succession , following the vice president and preceding the speaker. Through 1891, the president pro tempore was appointed on an intermittent basis only, when the vice president was not present to preside over the Senate, or at the adjournment of

3538-552: Was imposed on this designation, so Metcalf retained it until he died in office in 1978. The ceremonial post of deputy president pro tempore was created for Hubert Humphrey , a former vice president, in 1977 following his losing bid to become the Senate majority leader . The Senate resolution creating the position stated that any former president or former vice president serving in the Senate would be entitled to this position. However, since Humphrey, none has served. George J. Mitchell

3599-642: Was known for making his colleagues feel the sting of his criticisms, and some thought him better at merely opposing than offering constructive alternatives. David Davis joked that he could make Edmunds vote against any measure by simply phrasing the request for votes in the New England town meeting way: "Contrary-minded will say no." One friend trying to interest him in a presidential bid pleaded, "But, Edmunds, think how much fun you would have vetoing bills." Edmunds took special delight in goading southern senators into blurting out statements that would embarrass

3660-502: Was noted for defending his stance on Blaine in 1884, turned the other direction and harshly attacked Edmunds. A number of smaller papers split, and the Burlington Free Press affirmed its support for the incumbent senator. Blaine himself held a strong contempt for Edmunds, and many of the former's supporters likely financed the movement to oust him. Despite such a fierce effort, Edmunds ultimately retained his seat when

3721-433: Was removed toward the end of the 113th Congress , shortly before Patrick Leahy was to become the first holder of the office in six years. The salary of the president pro tempore for 2024 was $ 193,400, equal to that of the majority leaders and minority leaders of both houses of Congress. If there is a vacancy in the office of vice president, then the salary would be the same as that of the vice president. The salary alongside

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