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The United States Senate observes a number of traditions, some formal and some informal. Some of the current and former traditions are described below:
From the Senate's earliest days, the new members have observed a ritual of remaining silent during floor debates for a period of time. Depending on the era and the senator, this has ranged from several months to several years. Today, this obsolescent Senate tradition survives only in part—the special attention given to a member's first major address, or maiden speech .
Beginning in 1904 and continuing every other year until the 1950s, new members of Congress were given a copy of the Jefferson Bible, an edited version of the Bible by Thomas Jefferson that excluded what he felt were statements about the supernatural. Until the practice first stopped, copies were provided by the Government Printing Office. A private organization, the Libertarian Press, revived the practice in 1997. [1]
The procedural activities of the Senate are guided by the Standing Rules of the Senate. Tradition states that each day is begun with the Chaplain's Daily Prayer, which can be given by the Senate chaplain, or a representative of any faith. Following the prayer, the Senate recites the Pledge of Allegiance.
At the end of a session of Congress it is traditional for senators to read speeches into the Congressional Record praising the efforts of colleagues who will not be returning for the next session.
If a senator dies in office, it is traditional for the Senate to adjourn for a day and for U.S. flags to be flown at half-staff. A black cloth and a vase filled with white roses are placed over the deceased senator's desk, and a large contingent of senators often travel to the home state of the departed senator to pay their respects.
The Senate holds an annual reading of President George Washington's Farewell Address. This tradition, originally designed to be a morale-boosting gesture during the darkest hours of the American Civil War, began on February 22, 1862.
A number of items located around the Senate chamber are steeped in tradition.
In 1819 new desks were ordered for the senators to replace the original set which was destroyed in the British attack on Washington in the War of 1812. The Daniel Webster desk [2] has the oldest design as it lacks a 19th-century modification to add extra storage space to the top. When Daniel Webster acquired this seat, he pronounced that if his predecessor could organize himself to work with the reduced desk space, so could he. Every subsequent senator who has sat at that desk has also declined to have it improved. In keeping with a 1974 Senate resolution, this desk is assigned to the senior Senator from Webster's birth state, New Hampshire. [3] Jeanne Shaheen has been the occupant of this desk since 2011.
In the early twentieth century, a tradition of senators engraving their own name on the bottom of the desk drawers emerged.
In 1965, California senator George Murphy began a tradition of keeping a desk near the back of the chamber stocked with candy. This continues today. [4]
The Senate uses three gavels, each of them have an hourglass shape with no handle. The first gavel, which had been used since at least 1789, cracked during the 1954 Senate session when then Vice President Richard Nixon (acting as President of the Senate) used it during a heated debate. Prior to this, an attempt to further prevent damage to the old gavel was done by adding silver plates to both ends. A replacement gavel made of ivory was presented to the Senate by the Republic of India and first used on November 17, 1954. In response to widespread awareness of elephant poaching and illegal ivory trades, a white marble gavel has been in use since at least 2021.[ citation needed ]
All three gavels are kept in a mahogany box that is carried to the senate floor by a page; at the adjournment of a senate session the gavels are taken to the Sergeant at Arms' office for safekeeping. [5]
According to custom, bean soup is available on the Senate dining room menu every day. This tradition, which dates back to the early twentieth century, is variously attributed to a request by Senator Fred Dubois of Idaho, or, in another version of the story, to Senator Knute Nelson of Minnesota. The Dubois includes mashed potatoes and yields five gallons of soup. [6]
There are two Senate soup recipes:
The Famous Senate Restaurant Bean Soup Recipe
2 pounds [900 g] dried navy beans
four US quarts [3.8 L] hot water
1+1⁄2 pounds [680 g] smoked ham hocks
1 onion, chopped
2 tablespoons butter
salt and pepper to taste
Wash the navy beans and run hot water through them until they are slightly whitened. Place beans into pot with hot water. Add ham hocks and simmer approximately three hours in a covered pot, stirring occasionally. Remove ham hocks and set aside to cool. Dice meat and return to soup. Lightly brown the onion in butter. Add to soup. Before serving, bring to a boil and season with salt and pepper. Serves 8. [6]
Bean Soup Recipe (for 5 gallons [19 L])
3 pounds [1.4 kg] dried navy beans
2 pounds [900 g] of ham and a ham bone
1 quart [0.95 L] mashed potatoes
5 onions, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
four cloves garlic, chopped
half a bunch of parsley, chopped
Clean the beans, then cook them dry. Add ham, bone and water and bring to a boil. Add potatoes and mix thoroughly. Add chopped vegetables and bring to a boil. Simmer for one hour before serving. [6]
Seersucker Thursday is an annual tradition in which senators wear clothing made of seersucker on National Seersucker Day. This light, cotton-based material is traditional in the Southern United States.
The tradition was started by Republican Senator Trent Lott of Mississippi in 1996 who wanted to "bring a little Southern charm to the Capitol" to remind the Senate of how senators dressed before the advent of air conditioning in the 1950s. The practice was temporarily suspended in 2012 amid congressional gridlock, but began again in 2014.
While this tradition is an annual event, it is not uncommon to see congressional staffers don seersucker suits on Thursdays throughout the year.
As a body, the Senate tends to afford great deference to any member's objection regarding a nominee to a federal office having geographical ties to that member's state, especially when the objecting member has the same party affiliation as the president. Objections from members of the party in opposition to the president generally are not afforded the same weight. However, the blue slip policy of the Judiciary Committee allows even members of the president's opposition party to block nominees to positions as federal district and appellate court judges, U.S. attorneys, and federal marshals.
Another custom relating to the Senate's power "to advise and consent" is that when a nominee for federal office is a current or former U.S. senator, the nomination generally proceeds towards a vote without first being referred to the relevant committee. Additionally, senators will tend to vote their approval of the nominee, even when the nominee is of the other party, although they are not bound by the custom to do so. Only in exceedingly rare instances has the Senate referred such nominations to committee or rejected the nominee.
Polish cuisine is a style of food preparation originating in and widely popular in Poland. Due to Poland's history, Polish cuisine has evolved over the centuries to be very eclectic, and shares many similarities with other national cuisines. Polish cooking in other cultures is often referred to as à la polonaise.
Ukrainian cuisine is the collection of the various cooking traditions of the people of Ukraine, one of the largest and most populous European countries. It is heavily influenced by the rich dark soil (chornozem) from which its ingredients come, and often involves many components. Traditional Ukrainian dishes often experience a complex heating process – "at first they are fried or boiled, and then stewed or baked. This is the most distinctive feature of Ukrainian cuisine".
A ham hock or pork knuckle is the joint between the tibia/fibula and the metatarsals of the foot of a pig, where the foot was attached to the hog's leg. It is the portion of the leg that is neither part of the ham proper nor the ankle or foot (trotter), but rather the extreme shank end of the leg bone.
Pease pudding, also known as pease porridge, is a savoury pudding dish made of boiled legumes, typically split yellow peas, with water, salt and spices, and often cooked with a bacon or ham joint. A common dish in the north-east of England, it is consumed to a lesser extent in the rest of Britain, as well as in other regions worldwide.
Soup beans is a term common in the Southern United States, particularly the regions around the Appalachian Mountains. Soup beans are usually served with cornbread, greens, and potatoes and may be topped with raw chopped onions or ramps. Soup beans are considered a main course, but also serve as a side dish. In rural areas, where food was scarce during the winter, these dried beans were a staple food.
Noodle soup refers to a variety of soups with noodles and other ingredients served in a light broth. Noodle soup is a common dish across East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Himalayan states of South Asia. Various types of noodles are used, such as rice noodles, wheat noodles and egg noodles.
Sopa de mondongo is a soup made from diced tripe slow-cooked with vegetables such as bell peppers, onions, carrots, cabbage, celery, tomatoes, cilantro, garlic or root vegetables. The dish is generally prepared in former Spanish colonies in Latin America, Caribbean, and in the Philippines.
Caldo de pollo is a common Latin American soup that consists of chicken and vegetables.
Nigerian cuisine consists of dishes or food items from the hundreds of Native African ethnic groups that comprise Nigeria. Like other West African cuisines, it uses spices and herbs with palm or groundnut oil to create deeply flavored sauces and soups.
Ham salad is a traditional Anglo-American salad. Ham salad resembles chicken salad, egg salad, and tuna salad : the primary ingredient, ham, is mixed with smaller amounts of chopped vegetables or relishes, and the whole is bound with liberal amounts of a mayonnaise, salad cream, or other similar style of salad dressing, such as Miracle Whip.
Nettle soup is a traditional soup prepared from stinging nettles. Nettle soup is eaten mainly during spring and early summer, when young nettle buds are collected. Today, nettle soup is mostly eaten in Scandinavia, Iran, Ireland, and Eastern Europe, with regional differences in recipe; however historically consumption of nettles was more widespread.
United States Senate Bean Soup or simply Senate bean soup is a soup made with navy beans, ham hocks, and onion. It is served in the dining room of the United States Senate every day, in a tradition that dates back to the early 20th century. The original version included celery, garlic, and parsley. One of the two versions used today includes mashed potatoes.
Nilaga is a traditional meat stew or soup from the Philippines, made with boiled beef or pork mixed with various vegetables. It is typically eaten with white rice and is served with soy sauce, patis, labuyo chilis, and calamansi on the side.
Sopas is a Filipino macaroni soup made with elbow macaroni, various vegetables, and meat, in a creamy broth with evaporated milk. It is regarded as a comfort food in the Philippines and is typically eaten during breakfast, cold weather, or served to sick people.