77th United States Congress
The 77th 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, D.C., from January 3, 1941, to January 3, 1943, during the ninth and tenth years of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1930 United States census.
Both chambers maintained a Democratic majority - with the Senate being a supermajority. With the reelection of President Franklin D. Roosevelt to a then record third term, the Democrats maintained an overall federal government trifecta.
This was the first Congress to have more than one [Vice U.S. President|President of the United States|Senate president] due to the passage of the 20th Amendment in 1933.
Major events
- January 20, 1941: President Franklin D. Roosevelt began his third term.
- December 7, 1941: Attack on Pearl Harbor
- December 8, 1941: Joint Session of Congress met to hear President Roosevelt deliver his "Day of Infamy" speech
- December 26, 1941: Joint session of the United States Congress met in the Senate chamber for an address by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
Major legislation and resolutions
- March 11, 1941: Lend Lease Act,, Sess. 1, ch. 11,
- August 18, 1941: Flood Control Act of 1941,, Sess. 1, ch. 377,
- December 8, 1941: Resolution— War between United States and Japan,, Sess. 1, ch. 561,
- December 11, 1941: Resolution— War between United States and Germany,, Sess. 1, ch. 564,
- December 11, 1941: Resolution— War between United States and Italy,, Sess. 1, ch. 565,
- January 27, 1942: Air Raid Attack Act of 1942,, Sess. 2, ch. 20,
- January 30, 1942: Emergency Price Control Act of 1942,, Sess. 2, ch. 26,
- June 5, 1942: Resolution— War between United States and Bulgaria,, Sess. 2, ch. 323,
- June 5, 1942: Resolution— War between United States and Hungary,, Sess. 2, ch. 324,
- June 5, 1942: Resolution— War between United States and Romania,, Sess. 2, ch. 325,
- June 22, 1942: Resolution— United States Flag Code, including recognition of the Pledge of Allegiance,, Sess. 2, ch. 435,
- October 2, 1942: Stabilization Act of 1942,, Sess. 2, ch. 578,
Select committees
Leadership
Senate
- President: John Nance Garner, until January 20, 1941
- * Henry A. Wallace, from January 20, 1941
- President pro tempore: Pat Harrison, until June 22, 1941
- * Carter Glass, from July 10, 1941
Majority (Democratic) leadership
- Majority leader: Alben W. Barkley
- Majority Whip: Lister Hill
- [United States Senate House Democratic Caucus|Democratic Conference Secretary|Democratic Caucus Secretary]: Joshua B. Lee
Minority (Republican) leadership
- Minority leader: Charles L. McNary
- Republican Conference Secretary: Wallace H. White Jr.
- National Senatorial Committee Chair: John G. Townsend Jr.
House of Representatives
Majority (Democratic) leadership
- Majority leader: John William McCormack
- Democratic Whip: Patrick J. Boland, until May 18, 1942
- * Robert Ramspeck
- Democratic Caucus Chairman: Richard M. Duncan
- Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Patrick H. Drewry
Minority (Republican) leadership
- Minority leader: Joseph William Martin Jr.
- Republican Whip: Harry Lane Englebright
- Republican Conference Chairman: Roy O. Woodruff
- Republican Campaign Committee Chairman: J. William Ditter
Members
Senate
Senators are 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 1942; Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1944; and Class 1 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1946.Currently, this is the last congressional session in which the Democratic Party commanded all Senate seats from the South.
Currently, this is the second and last congressional session in which Wyoming sent 3 democrats to Congress.
Florida">List of United States senators from Florida">Florida
Louisiana">List of United States senators from Louisiana">Louisiana
Montana">List of United States senators from Montana">Montana
North Dakota">List of United States senators from North Dakota">North Dakota
Tennessee">List of United States senators from Tennessee">Tennessee
House of Representatives
Florida">List of United States representatives from Florida">Florida
Louisiana">List of United States representatives from Louisiana">Louisiana
Montana">List of United States representatives from Montana">Montana
North Dakota">List of United States representatives from North Dakota">North Dakota
Tennessee">List of United States representatives from Tennessee">Tennessee
Wyoming">List of United States representatives from Wyoming">Wyoming
Changes in membership
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of this Congress.Committees
Senate
- Agriculture and Forestry
- Agricultural Labor Shortages in the West
- Appropriations
- Audit and Control the Contingent Expenses of the Senate
- Banking and Currency
- Civil Service
- Civil Service Laws
- Claims
- Commerce
- District of Columbia
- Education and Labor
- Enrolled Bills
- Expenditures in Executive Departments
- Finance
- Foreign Relations
- Fiscal Affairs of the Government
- Fuel Situation in the Middle West
- mFuels in the Areas [West of the Mississippi
- Gasoline and Fuel Oil Shortages
- Immigration
- Indian Affairs
- Interoceanic Canals
- Interstate Commerce
- Investigate the National Defense Program
- Irrigation and Reclamation
- Judiciary
- Library
- Manufactures
- Military Affairs
- Mines and Mining
- Naval Affairs
- Old-Age Pension System
- Patents
- Pensions
- Post Office and Post Roads
- Printing
- Privileges and Elections
- Public Buildings and Grounds
- Public Lands and Surveys
- Rules
- Senatorial Campaign Expenditures
- Small Business Enterprises
- Territories and Insular Affairs
- Whole
- Wildlife Resources
- Wool Production
House of Representatives
- Accounts
- Agriculture
- Air Accidents
- Appropriations
- Banking and Currency
- Census
- Civil Service
- Claims
- Coinage, Weights and Measures
- Conservation of Wildlife Resources
- Disposition of Executive Papers
- District of Columbia
- Education
- Election of the President, Vice President and Representatives in Congress
- Elections No.#1
- Elections No.#2
- Elections No.#3
- Enrolled Bills
- Expenditures in the Executive Departments
- Flood Control
- Foreign Affairs
- Immigration and Naturalization
- Indian Affairs
- Insular Affairs
- Interstate and Foreign Commerce
- Investigate National Defense Migration
- Invalid Pensions
- Irrigation and Reclamation
- Judiciary
- Labor
- Library
- Memorials
- Merchant Marine and Fisheries
- Military Affairs
- Mines and Mining
- Naval Affairs
- Patents
- Pensions
- Post Office and Post Roads
- Public Buildings and Grounds
- Public Lands
- Revision of Laws
- Rivers and Harbors
- Roads
- Rules
- Small Business
- Standards of Official Conduct
- Territories
- War Claims
- Ways and Means
- World War Veterans' Legislation
- Whole
Joint committees
- United States Congress Joint Committee to Arrange the Inauguration for President-elect|Arrange the Inauguration for President-elect
- Conditions of Indian Tribes
- United States Congress Joint Committee on the Disposition of Executive Papers|Disposition of Executive Papers
- United States Congress Joint Committee on the Eradication of the Mediterranean Fruit Fly|Eradication of the Mediterranean Fruit Fly
- Forestry
- United States Congress Joint Committee on Government Organization
- The Library
- Printing
- United States Congress Joint Committee on Reduction of Nonessential Federal Expenditures|Reduction of Nonessential Federal Expenditures
- Taxation
- United States Congress Joint Committee on to Investigate Phosphate Resource of the United States|To Investigate Phosphate Resource of the United States
Caucuses
Employees
Legislative branch agency">List of federal agencies in the United States">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: Archibald MacLeish
- Public Printer of the United States: Augustus E. Giegengack
Senate
- Secretary: Edwin A. Halsey
- Librarian: Ruskin McArdle
- Secretary for the Majority: Leslie Biffle
- Secretary for the Minority: Carl A. Loeffler
- Sergeant at Arms: Chesley W. Jurney
- Parliamentarian: Charles Watkins
- Chaplain: ZeBarney Thorne Phillips, until May 1942
- * Frederick Brown Harris, after October 10, 1942
House of Representatives
- Clerk: South Trimble
- Sergeant at Arms: Kenneth Romney
- Parliamentarian: Lewis Deschler
- Reading Clerks: Roger M. Calloway and Alney E. Chaffee
- Doorkeeper: Joseph J. Sinnott
- Postmaster: Finis E. Scott
- Chaplain: James Shera Montgomery