U.S. Senator John Barrasso (R-WY) has officially been sworn into the United States Senate to continue serving Wyoming in the 119th Congress. He also began his new leadership role as Senate Majority Whip, the second most senior position in the Senate Republican leadership. He released the following statement:
“It’s my honor to continue representing the people of Wyoming in the United States Senate. Their priorities are at the top of my mind as I take on the position of Majority Whip. Americans voted boldly this year to lower costs, secure our border, and unleash American energy. Senate Republicans heard them loud and clear.
“We are ready to deliver a new direction for our country with President Trump. I look forward to serving the American people and securing more wins for Wyoming.”
In addition to his role as Senate Majority Whip, Barrasso serves on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources, Finance, and Foreign Relations committees.
What Is a Party Whip?
A party whip is a member of party leadership in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Both the Majority Whip and the Minority Whip seek to align rank-and-file members of their political party around a shared agenda and way of voting. Specifically, the party whip coordinates with other party leaders to make sure that all of their lawmakers vote the same way on a specific piece of legislation. The name “whip” comes from the fox-hunting term “whipper-in,” the person who corrals foxhounds.
What Do Whips Do in The Senate?
In the U.S. Senate, the party whip is the second-highest position within a party, serving directly below the floor leader. This means that the Republican whip is second-in-command to the Republican leader, and the Democratic whip is second-in-command to the Democratic leader.
The majority party in the Senate has a third leader: the president pro tempore, a position traditionally held by the longest-tenured member of the majority party. The president pro tempore is third in the line of succession to the presidency, following the vice president and the Speaker of the House. Yet in day-to-day business, the president pro tempore almost always defers to the Senate Majority Leader and Senate Majority Whip.
What Do Whips Do in the House Of Representatives?
The House Majority Whip and House Minority Whip function similarly to their Senate counterparts, seeking a unified front on every matter from appropriations to healthcare to military policy.
The primary difference between a whip in the House and the Senate is that the House Majority Whip is sometimes the number three position in party leadership, rather than the number two. This is because the majority party leader in the House becomes the Speaker of the House, and the number two member of party leadership becomes the House Majority Leader. This leaves the number three in the caucus to serve as Majority Whip.
