United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

Last updated

Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Standing committee
Active
Seal of the United States Senate.svg
United States Senate
119th Congress
United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.jpg
History
Formed1816
Leadership
Chair Jim Risch (R)
Since January 3, 2025
Ranking member Jeanne Shaheen (D)
Since January 3, 2025
Structure
Seats22 members
Political partiesMajority (12)
  •   Republican (12)
Minority (10)
Jurisdiction
Policy areas Foreign policy, aid, diplomacy
Oversight authority Department of State
Agency for International Development
House counterpart House Committee on Foreign Affairs
Meeting place
423 Dirksen Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C.
Website
foreign.senate.gov
Rules

    The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign aid programs; arms sales and training for national allies; and holding confirmation hearings for high-level positions in the Department of State. [1] Its sister committee in the House of Representatives is the Committee on Foreign Affairs. [note 1]

    Contents

    Along with the Finance and Judiciary committees, the Foreign Relations Committee is among the oldest in the Senate, dating to the initial creation of committees in 1816. [2] It has played a leading role in several important treaties and foreign policy initiatives throughout U.S. history, including the Alaska Purchase, the establishment of the United Nations, and the passage of the Marshall Plan. [2] The committee has also produced eight U.S. presidentsAndrew Jackson, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Benjamin Harrison, Warren Harding, John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden (Buchanan and Biden serving as chair)—and 19 secretaries of state. Notable members have included Arthur Vandenberg, Henry Cabot Lodge, and William Fulbright.

    The Foreign Relations Committee is considered one of the most powerful and prestigious in the Senate, due to its long history, broad influence on U.S. foreign policy, jurisdiction over all diplomatic nominations, and its being the only Senate committee to deliberate and report treaties. [3]

    From 2021 to 2023, the Foreign Relations Committee was chaired by Democratic senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, until he stepped down as chair after facing federal corruption charges. [4]

    Role

    In 1943, a confidential analysis of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by British scholar Isaiah Berlin for the Foreign Office stated: [5]

    The Senate of the United States ... keeps a close watch on foreign policy, not merely in theory but in practice. The two-thirds majority of the Senate needed for the ratification of all foreign treaties is only the best known of its powers, but its general control over all legislation and its power of veto over the appointment of ambassadors, and other high public officials, and the influence of its views over public opinion, give it a unique position in the determination of United States foreign policy. The organ within the Senate which moulds this policy is the Foreign Relations Committee, which has in its power to alter, delay and, under certain political circumstances, to veto almost any piece of major policy in this field.

    History

    Between 1887 and 1907, Alabama Democrat John Tyler Morgan played a leading role on the committee. Morgan called for a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through Nicaragua, enlarging the merchant marine and the Navy, and acquiring Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Cuba. He expected Latin American and Asian markets would become a new export market for Alabama's cotton, coal, iron, and timber. The canal would make trade with the Pacific much more feasible, and an enlarged military would protect that new trade. By 1905, most of his dreams had become reality, with the canal passing through Panama instead of Nicaragua. [6]

    Refusing to give the lady [Peace Treaty of Versailles] a seat--by Senators Borah, Lodge and Johnson, c. 1919 Refusing to give the lady a seat - Rollin Kirby Trim.jpg
    Refusing to give the lady [Peace Treaty of Versailles] a seat—by Senators Borah, Lodge and Johnson, c. 1919

    During World War II, the committee took the lead in rejecting traditional isolationism and designing a new internationalist foreign policy based on the assumption that the United Nations would be a much more effective force than the old discredited League of Nations. Of special concern was the insistence that Congress play a central role in postwar foreign policy, as opposed to its ignorance of the main decisions made during the war. [7] Republican senator Arthur Vandenberg played the central role. [8]

    Committee chair Senator J. William Fulbright (left) with Senator Wayne Morse during a hearing on the Vietnam War in 1966 Senator Wayne Morse with Senator William Fulbright at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 1966.jpg
    Committee chair Senator J. William Fulbright (left) with Senator Wayne Morse during a hearing on the Vietnam War in 1966

    In 1966, as tensions over the Vietnam War escalated, the committee set up hearings on possible relations with Communist China. Witnesses, especially academic specialists on East Asia, suggested to the American public that it was time to adopt a new policy of containment without isolation. The hearings Indicated that American public opinion toward China had moved away from hostility and toward cooperation. The hearings had a long-term impact when Richard Nixon became president, discarded containment, and began a policy of détente with China. [9] The problem remained of how to deal simultaneously with the Chinese government on Taiwan after formal recognition was accorded to the Beijing government. The committee drafted the Taiwan Relations Act (US, 1979) which enabled the United States both to maintain friendly relations with Taiwan and to develop fresh relations with China. [10]

    In response to conservative criticism that the state department lacked hardliners, President Ronald Reagan in 1981 nominated Ernest W. Lefever as Assistant Secretary of State. Lefever performed poorly at his confirmation hearings and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations rejected his nomination by vote of 4–13, prompting Lefever to withdraw his name. [11] Elliot Abrams filled the position.

    Republican senator Jesse Helms, a staunch conservative, was committee chair in the late 1990s. He pushed for reform of the UN by blocking payment of U.S. membership dues. [12]

    Bertie Bowman served as a staffer on the FRC from 1966 to 1990 and as the hearing coordinator from 2000 to 2021. [13] [14]

    Members, 119th Congress

    Majority [15] Minority [16]

    Subcommittees

    SubcommitteesChair [17] Ranking Member [17]
    Africa and Global Health Policy Ted Cruz (R-TX) Cory Booker (D-NJ)
    East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy Pete Ricketts (R-NE) Chris Coons (D-DE)
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Steve Daines (R-MT) Chris Murphy (D-CT)
    Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy Mike Lee (R-UT) Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism Dave McCormick (R-PA) Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development Bill Hagerty (R-TN) Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues John Curtis (R-UT) Tim Kaine (D-VA)

    Chairs (1816–present)

    1976 publication of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the occasion of its 160th anniversary Senate Foreign Relations Committee 160th Anniversity cover.jpg
    1976 publication of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the occasion of its 160th anniversary

    Former chairs are listed below. [18]

    NamePartyStateStartEnd
    James Barbour Democratic-Republican VA18161818
    Nathaniel Macon Democratic-Republican NC18181819
    James Brown Democratic-Republican LA18191820
    James Barbour Democratic-Republican VA18201821
    Rufus King Federalist NY18211822
    James Barbour Democratic-Republican VA18221825
    Nathaniel Macon Democratic-Republican NC18251826
    Nathan Sanford Democratic-Republican NY18261827
    Nathaniel Macon Democratic-Republican NC18271828
    Littleton Tazewell Democratic VA18281832
    John Forsyth Democratic GA18321833
    William Wilkins Democratic PA18331834
    Henry Clay Whig KY18341836
    James Buchanan Democratic PA18361841
    William Rives Whig VA18411842
    William Archer Whig VA18421845
    William Allen Democratic OH18451846
    Ambrose Sevier Democratic AR18461848
    Edward Hannegan Democratic IN18481849
    Thomas Benton Democratic MO1849
    William King Democratic AL18491850
    Henry Foote Democratic MS18501851
    James Mason Democratic VA18511861
    Charles Sumner Republican MA18611871
    Simon Cameron Republican PA18711877
    Hannibal Hamlin Republican ME18771879
    William Eaton Democratic CT18791881
    Ambrose Burnside Republican RI1881
    George Edmunds Republican VT1881
    William Windom Republican MN18811883
    John Miller Republican CA18831886
    John Sherman Republican OH18861893
    John Morgan Democratic AL18931895
    John Sherman Republican OH18951897
    William Frye
    Acting
    Republican ME1897
    Cushman Davis Republican MN18971900
    Shelby Cullom Republican IL19011911
    Augustus Bacon Democratic GA19131914
    William Stone Democratic MO19141918
    Gilbert Hitchcock Democratic NE19181919
    Henry Lodge Republican MA19191924
    William Borah Republican ID19241933
    Key Pittman Democratic NV19331940
    Walter George Democratic GA19401941
    Tom Connally Democratic TX19411947
    Arthur Vandenberg Republican MI19471949
    Tom Connally Democratic TX19491953
    Alexander Wiley Republican WI19531955
    Walter George Democratic GA19551957
    Theodore Green Democratic RI19571959
    Bill Fulbright Democratic AR19591975
    John Sparkman Democratic AL19751979
    Frank Church Democratic ID19791981
    Chuck Percy Republican IL19811985
    Richard Lugar Republican IN19851987
    Claiborne Pell Democratic RI19871995
    Jesse Helms Republican NC19952001
    Joe Biden Democratic DE2001
    Jesse Helms Republican NC2001
    Joe Biden Democratic DE20012003
    Richard Lugar Republican IN20032007
    Joe Biden Democratic DE20072009
    John Kerry Democratic MA20092013
    Bob Menendez Democratic NJ20132015
    Bob Corker Republican TN20152019
    Jim Risch Republican ID20192021
    Bob Menendez Democratic NJ20212023
    Ben Cardin Democratic MD20232025
    Jim Risch Republican ID2025present

    Ranking Members

    NamePartyStateStartEnd
    Rufus King Federalist NY18161817
    George Troup Democratic-Republican GA18171818
    Rufus King Federalist NY18181819
    James Barbour Democratic-Republican VA18191820
    James Brown Democratic-Republican LA18201822
    Nathaniel Macon Democratic-Republican NC18221823
    Andrew Jackson Democratic-Republican TN18231824
    Nathaniel Macon Democratic-Republican NC18241825
    Elijah Mills Federalist MA18251826
    Samuel Bell Democratic-Republican
    (1826–1827)
    NH18261828
    National Republican
    (1827–1828)
    John Berrien Jacksonian GA18281829
    Samuel Bell National Republican NH18291831
    William King Jacksonian AL18311832
    Wille Mangum Jacksonian NC18321833
    John Forsyth Jacksonian GA18331834
    Peleg Sprague National Republican ME18341835
    Wille Mangum National Republican NC18351836
    John King Democratic GA18341838
    Henry Clay Whig KY18381839
    Bedford Brown Democratic NC18391840
    John Calhoun Democratic SC18401841
    James Buchanan Democratic PA18411845
    Charles Atherton Democratic NH18451847
    Edward Hannegan Democratic IN18471848
    Wille Mangum Whig NC18481849
    Daniel Webster Whig MA1849
    Wille Mangum Whig NC18491850
    Stephen Douglas Democratic IL18501851
    Henry Dodge Democratic WI1851
    Wille Mangum Whig NC18511853
    John Clayton Whig DE18531855
    John Slidell Democratic LA18551856
    John Weller Democratic CA18561857
    Trusten Polk Democratic MO18571861
    Ira Harris Republican NY1861
    David Wilmot Republican PA1861
    Trusten Polk Democratic MO18611862
    Garrett Davis Unionist KY1862 [a]
    John Henderson Democratic MO18621863
    Reverdy Johnson Democratic MD18631864
    Ira Harris Republican NY18641865
    Solomon Foot Republican VT1865
    Benjamin Wade Republican OH18651866
    Joseph Fowler Union Democratic TN18661867
    Oliver Morton Republican IN18671868
    James Patterson Republican NH18681869
    Oliver Morton Republican IN18691871
    James Patterson Republican NH18711873
    Frederick Frelinghuysen Republican NJ18731875
    Roscoe Conkling Republican NY18751877
    Stanley Matthews Republican OH18771879
    Hannibal Hamlin Republican ME18791881
    Thomas Ferry Republican ME18811883
    John Morgan Democratic AL18831885
    William Frye Republican ME18851887
    John Morgan Democratic AL18871893
    John Daniel Democratic VA18931895
    Henry Lodge Republican MA18951897
    John Morgan Democratic AL1897
    David Turpie Democratic IN18971899
    Joseph Foraker Republican OH18991901
    John Morgan Democratic AL19011903
    Charles Fairbanks Republican IN19031905
    John Spooner Republican WI19051907
    Augustus Bacon Democratic GA19071909
    Thomas Carter Republican MT19091911
    Theodore Burton Republican OH19111913
    Claude Swanson Democratic CA19131915
    Henry Lodge Republican MA19151917
    John Shields Democratic TN19171919
    Hiram Johnson Republican CA19191921
    Harry New Republican IN19211923
    James Wadsworth Republican NY19231925
    Claude Swanson Democratic CA19231929
    Bob La Follette Republican OH19291931
    Claude Swanson Democratic CA19311933
    William Borah Republican ID19331941
    Hiram Johnson Republican CA19411945
    Arthur Capper Republican KS19451947
    Tom Connally Democratic TX19471949
    Arthur Vandenberg Republican MI19491951
    Alexander Wiley Republican WI19511953
    Walter George Democratic GA19531955
    Alexander Wiley Republican WI19551963
    Bourke Hickenlooper Republican IA19631969
    Karl Mundt Republican SD19691972
    George Aiken Republican VT19721975
    Clifford Case Republican NJ19751979
    Jacob Javits Republican NY19791981
    Claiborne Pell Democratic RI19811987
    Richard Lugar Republican IN1987 [b]
    Jesse Helms Republican NC19871995
    Joe Biden Democratic DE19972001
    Jesse Helms Republican NC20012003
    Joe Biden Democratic DE20032007
    Richard Lugar Republican IN20072013
    Bob Corker Republican TN20132015
    Bob Menendez Democratic NJ2015
    Ben Cardin Democratic MD20152018
    Bob Menendez Democratic NJ20182021
    Jim Risch Republican ID20212025
    Jeanne Shaheen Democratic NH2025present
    1. Appointed to the committee after Polk was expelled from the Senate.
    2. Lugar briefly held the ranking position while Helms attempted to succeed him. Lugar kept the position with the support of the committee's Republicans until a vote by the full Senate Republican Conference overruled them and installed Helms. [19] [20]

    Historical committee rosters

    118th Congress

    Majority [21] Minority [22]
    Subcommittees
    SubcommitteesChairRanking Member
    Africa and Global Health Policy Cory Booker (D-NJ) Tim Scott (R-SC)
    East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) Mitt Romney (R-UT)
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) Pete Ricketts (R-NE)
    Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) John Barrasso (R-WY)
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism Chris Murphy (D-CT) Todd Young (R-IN)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development Ben Cardin (D-MD) Bill Hagerty (R-TN)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues Tim Kaine (D-VA) Marco Rubio (R-FL)

    117th Congress

    MajorityMinority
    Subcommittees
    SubcommitteesChairRanking Member
    Africa and Global Health Policy Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) Mike Rounds (R-SD)
    East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy Ed Markey (D-MA) Mitt Romney (R-UT)
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) Ron Johnson (R-WI)
    Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy Chris Coons (D-DE) Rob Portman (R-OH)
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism Chris Murphy (D-CT) Todd Young (R-IN)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development Ben Cardin (D-MD) Bill Hagerty (R-TN)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues Tim Kaine (D-VA) Marco Rubio (R-FL)

    116th Congress

    MajorityMinority
    SubcommitteesChairRanking Member
    Africa and Global Health Policy Lindsey Graham (R-SC) Tim Kaine (D-VA)
    East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy Cory Gardner (R-CO) Ed Markey (D-MA)
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Ron Johnson (R-WI) Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism Mitt Romney (R-UT) Chris Murphy (D-CT)
    Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy Todd Young (R-IN) Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development John Barrasso (R-WY) Cory Booker (D-NJ)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues Marco Rubio (R-FL) Ben Cardin (D-MD)

    115th Congress

    MajorityMinority
    SubcommitteesChairRanking Member
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism Jim Risch (R-ID) Tim Kaine (D-VA)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues Marco Rubio (R-FL) Ben Cardin (D-MD) since February 6, 2018
    Bob Menendez (D-NJ) until February 6, 2018
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Ron Johnson (R-WI) Chris Murphy (D-CT)
    Africa and Global Health Policy Jeff Flake (R-AZ) Cory Booker (D-NJ)
    East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy Cory Gardner (R-CO) Ed Markey (D-MA)
    Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy Todd Young (R-IN) Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development Johnny Isakson (R-GA) Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

    114th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Sources: 2015  Congressional Record, Vol. 161, Page  S297 –297, 661–662

    SubcommitteeChairRanking Member
    Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism Jim Risch (R-Idaho) Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
    Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
    Europe and Regional Security Cooperation Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.) Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
    Africa and Global Health Policy Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) Ed Markey (D-Mass.)
    State Department and USAID Management, International Operations and Bilateral International Development Rand Paul (R-Ky.) Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
    East Asia, The Pacific and International Cybersecurity Policy Cory Gardner (R-Colo.) Ben Cardin (D-Md.)
    International Development, Multilateral Institutions and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

    113th Congress

    MajorityMinority

    Sources: 2013  Congressional Record, Vol. 159, Page  S297 –297, 661–662

    Officials from the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee inspecting burnt down printing press of Uthayan newspaper in Jaffna on December 7, 2013, while E. Saravanapavan, the managing director of the newspaper explaining something to him US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Inspecting Burnt Down Printing Press of Uthayan Newspaper.jpg
    Officials from the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee inspecting burnt down printing press of Uthayan newspaper in Jaffna on December 7, 2013, while E. Saravanapavan, the managing director of the newspaper explaining something to him
    SubcommitteeChairRanking Member
    International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women's Issues Barbara Boxer (D-CA) Rand Paul (R-KY)
    East Asian and Pacific Affairs Ben Cardin (D-MD) Marco Rubio (R-FL)
    African Affairs Chris Coons (D-DE) Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
    Western Hemisphere and Global Narcotics Affairs Tom Udall (D-NM) John McCain (R-AZ)
    European Affairs Chris Murphy (D-CT) Ron Johnson (R-WI)
    Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs Tim Kaine (D-VA) Jim Risch (R-ID)
    International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection, and Peace Corps Tim Kaine (D-VA), until 2013
    Ed Markey (D-MA), from 2013
    John Barrasso (R-WY)

    See also

    Notes

    1. Renamed from Committee on International Relations by the 110th Congress in January 2007.

    References

    1. "Committee History & Rules | United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations". www.foreign.senate.gov. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
    2. 1 2 "Committee History & Rules | United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations". www.foreign.senate.gov. Archived from the original on October 2, 2023. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
    3. "12.6 Committees", American Government and Politics in the Information Age, University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing edition, 2016. This edition adapted from a work originally produced in 2011 by a publisher who has requested that it not receive attribution., November 16, 2016, archived from the original on October 1, 2023, retrieved January 22, 2021
    4. Bob Menendez steps down as US Senate foreign relations chairman after indictment, September 22, 2023, archived from the original on September 25, 2023, retrieved September 22, 2023
    5. Hachey, Thomas E. (Winter 1973–1974). "American Profiles on Capitol Hill: A Confidential Study for the British Foreign Office in 1943" (PDF). Wisconsin Magazine of History. 57 (2): 141–153. JSTOR   4634869. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 21, 2013.
    6. Joseph A. Fry, "John Tyler Morgan's Southern Expansionism," Diplomatic History (1985) 9#4 pp: 329-346.
    7. Roland Young, Congressional Politics in the Second World War (1958), pp 168–96
    8. James A. Gazell, "Arthur H. Vandenberg, Internationalism, and the United Nations." Political Science Quarterly (1973) pp: 375-394. in JSTOR Archived December 4, 2020, at the Wayback Machine
    9. Katherine Klinefelter, "The China Hearings: America's Shifting Paradigm on China," Congress & the Presidency (2011) 38#1 pp: 60-76.
    10. Jacob K. Javits, "Congress And Foreign Relations: The Taiwan Relations Act," Foreign Affairs (1981) 60#1 pp 54-62
    11. Robert David Johnson (2005). Congress and the Cold War. Cambridge UO. pp. 253–54. ISBN   9781139447447.
    12. William A. Link, Righteous Warrior: Jesse Helms and the Rise of Modern Conservatism (2008)
    13. Rosenwald, Michael S. (October 25, 2023). "Bertie Bowman, revered aide who got start sweeping Capitol steps, dies at 92". Washington Post. Retrieved October 25, 2023.
    14. "Bowman, Bertie". Encyclopedia.com . Archived from the original on October 27, 2023. Retrieved October 27, 2023.
    15. S.Res. 16 (119th Congress)
    16. S.Res. 17 (119th Congress)
    17. 1 2 "Risch, Shaheen Announce SFRC Subcommittee Assignments". Foreign Relations Committee. January 28, 2025.
    18. "Background Information on the Committee on Foreign Relations of the United States Senate" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 5, 2019.
    19. "Lugar defeats Helms for Foreign Relations post - UPI Archives".
    20. "The fight between Sens. Jesse Helms and Richard Lugar... - UPI Archives".
    21. S.Res. 30 (118th Congress)
    22. S.Res. 31 (118th Congress)
    23. Sen. Menendez voluntarily stepped down as Ranking Member on 1 April 2015 after being indicted by the Justice Department. Menendez Gives Up Foreign Relations Post Archived October 1, 2023, at the Wayback Machine

    Further reading

    Primary sources