Senate career of Hillary Rodham Clinton

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton is the 67th United States Secretary of State, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She was a United States Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009. As the wife of the 42nd President of the United States, Bill Clinton, she was the First Lady of the...

served as a United States Senator from New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

from January 3, 2001 to January 21, 2009. She won the United States Senate election in New York, 2000 and the United States Senate election in New York, 2006.

Assignments

Clinton served on five Senate committees with nine subcommittee assignments:

Committee on the Budget
United States Senate Committee on the Budget
The United States Senate Committee on Budget was established by the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974. It is responsible for drafting Congress's annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the Federal Government. The committee has jurisdiction over the...

(2001-2003)
Committee on Armed Services
United States Senate Committee on Armed Services
The Committee on Armed Services is a committee of the United States Senate empowered with legislative oversight of the nation's military, including the Department of Defense, military research and development, nuclear energy , benefits for members of the military, the Selective Service System and...

(2003-2009)
- Subcommittee on Airland
  United States Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Airland
  The Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Airland is one of six subcommittees within the Senate Armed Services Committee.-Jurisdiction:The Airland Subcommittee has primary jurisdiction over all issues related to the U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, and U.S...
- Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
  United States Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities
  The Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Emerging Threats and Capabilities is one of six subcommittees within the Senate Armed Services Committee.-Jurisdiction:...
- Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
  United States Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support
  The Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support is one of six subcommittees within the Senate Armed Services Committee.-Jurisdiction:...
Committee on Environment and Public Works
United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works
The United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works is responsible for dealing with matters related to the environment and infrastructure.-Members, 112th Congress:...

(2001-2009)
- Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Safety
- Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure
- Subcommittee on Superfund and Environmental Health (Chairwoman, 2007-2009)
Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (2001-2009)
- Subcommittee on Children and Families
  United States Senate Health Subcommittee on Children and Families
  The Senate Health Subcommittee on Children and Families is one of the three subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Health-Jurisdiction:The Subcommittee's jurisdiction includes Head Start, the Family Medical Leave Act, child care and child support, and other issues involving children, youth,...
- Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety
  United States Senate Health Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety
  The Senate Health Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety is one of the three subcommittees within the Senate Committee on Health-Jurisdiction:...
Special Committee on Aging
United States Senate Special Committee on Aging
The United States Senate Special Committee on Aging was initially established in 1961 as a temporary committee; it became a permanent Senate committee in 1977...

.

She was also a Commissioner of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe

Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe

The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe , also known as the U.S. Helsinki Commission, is an independent U.S. Government agency created by Congress in 1976 to monitor and encourage compliance with the Helsinki Final Act and other OSCE commitments. It was established in 1976 pursuant to...

(2001-2009).

She also held two leadership positions in the Senate Democratic Caucus:

Chairwoman of Steering and Outreach Committee
United States Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee
According to the official website, "the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee is dedicated to fostering dialogue between Senate Democrats and community leaders from across the nation...

(2003–2006)
Vice Chairwoman of Committee Outreach (2007–2009)

First term

Upon entering the United States Senate, Clinton maintained a low public profile while building relationships with senators from both parties, to avoid the polarizing celebrity she experienced as First Lady. (It was reported that when Elizabeth Dole

Elizabeth Dole

Mary Elizabeth Alexander Hanford "Liddy" Dole is an American politician who served in both the Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush presidential administrations, as well as a United States Senator....

joined the Senate in 2003 under somewhat similar circumstances, she modeled her initial approach after Clinton's, as did the nationally visible Barack Obama

Barack Obama

Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

in 2005.) Clinton also forged alliances with religiously-inclined senators by becoming a regular participant in the Senate Prayer Breakfast.

Following the September 11, 2001 attacks

September 11, 2001 attacks

The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...

, Clinton sought to obtain funding for the recovery efforts in New York City and security improvements in her state. Working with New York's senior senator, Charles Schumer

Charles Schumer

Charles Ellis "Chuck" Schumer is the senior United States Senator from New York and a member of the Democratic Party. First elected in 1998, he defeated three-term Republican incumbent Al D'Amato by a margin of 55%–44%. He was easily re-elected in 2004 by a margin of 71%–24% and in 2010 by a...

, she was instrumental in quickly securing $21.4 billion in funding for the World Trade Center

World Trade Center

The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...

site's redevelopment. Not a favorite of New York City police officers and firefighters who were in attendance, she was audibly booed and heckled at The Concert for New York City

The Concert for New York City

The Concert for New York City was a benefit concert, featuring many famous musicians, that took place on October 20, 2001 at Madison Square Garden in New York City in response to the September 11, 2001 attacks...

on October 20, 2001, although her husband was loudly applauded. She subsequently took a leading role in investigating the health issues faced by 9/11 first responders

Health effects arising from the September 11, 2001 attacks

There has been growing concern over the health effects arising from the September 11 attacks in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan. Within seconds of the collapse of the World Trade Center, building materials, electronic equipment, and furniture were pulverized and spread over the area.In...

, eventually earning the praise and endorsement of New York City's Uniformed Fire Officers Association

Uniformed Fire Officers Association

Uniformed Fire Officers Association is a union for lieutenants, captains, battalion chiefs, deputy chiefs, medical officers and supervising fire marshals in the Fire Department of New York. Captain Alexander Hagan is the current president of the UFOA. Battalion Chief Jack McDonnell preceded Capt....

and the Uniformed Firefighters Association

Uniformed Firefighters Association

The Uniformed Firefighters Association is the main union of firefighters in the Fire Department of New York .Its president is Stephen J. Cassidy, a vocal critic of mayor Rudy Giuliani's decisions during the Rescue and recovery effort after the September 11, 2001 attacks.The union has made several...

for her 2006 re-election bid. In 2005, Clinton issued two studies that examined the disbursement of federal homeland security funds to local communities and first responders. Clinton voted for the USA Patriot Act

USA PATRIOT Act

The USA PATRIOT Act is an Act of the U.S. Congress that was signed into law by President George W. Bush on October 26, 2001...

in October 2001. In 2005, when the act was up for renewal, she worked to address some of the civil liberties concerns with it, before voting in favor of a compromise renewed act in March 2006 that gained large majority support.

Clinton strongly supported the 2001 U.S. military action in Afghanistan

War in Afghanistan (2001–present)

The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...

, saying it was a chance to combat terrorism while improving the lives of Afghan women who suffered under the Taliban government. Clinton voted in favor of the October 2002 Iraq War Resolution, which authorized United States President George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

to use military force against Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

, should such action be required to enforce a United Nations Security Council Resolution

United Nations Security Council Resolution

A United Nations Security Council resolution is a UN resolution adopted by the fifteen members of the Security Council; the UN body charged with "primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security"....

after pursuing with diplomatic efforts. (However, Clinton voted against the Levin Amendment to the Resolution, which would have required the President to conduct vigorous diplomacy at the U.N., and would have also required a separate Congressional authorization to unilaterally invade Iraq. She did vote for the Byrd Amendment to the Resolution, which would have limited the Congressional authorization to one year increments, but the only mechanism necessary for the President to renew his mandate without any Congressional oversight was to claim that the Iraq War was vital to national security each year the authorization required renewal.) Clinton later said that she did not read the full classified National Intelligence Estimate

National Intelligence Estimate

National Intelligence Estimates are United States federal government documents that are the authoritative assessment of the Director of National Intelligence on intelligence related to a particular national security issue...

that was delivered ten days before the vote to all members of Congress, and that gave a more subtle case for Iraq possessing weapons of mass destruction

Weapons of mass destruction

A weapon of mass destruction is a weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to a large number of humans and/or cause great damage to man-made structures , natural structures , or the biosphere in general...

than the Bush Administration's abridged summary, but that she was briefed on the report.

After the Iraq War began, Clinton made trips to both Iraq and Afghanistan to visit American troops stationed there, such as the 10th Mountain Division based in Fort Drum, New York. In spring 2004, Clinton publicly castigated U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz

Paul Wolfowitz

Paul Dundes Wolfowitz is a former United States Ambassador to Indonesia, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, President of the World Bank, and former dean of the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University...

at a hearing, saying his credibility was gone due to false predictions he had made before the war's start. On a visit to Iraq in February 2005, Clinton noted that the insurgency had failed to disrupt the democratic elections held earlier, and that parts of the country were functioning well. Noting that war deployments were draining regular and reserve forces, she co-introduced legislation to increase the size of the regular United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

by 80,000 soldiers to ease the strain. In late 2005, Clinton said that while immediate withdrawal from Iraq would be a mistake, Bush's pledge to stay "until the job is done" was also misguided, as it would give Iraqis "an open-ended invitation not to take care of themselves." She criticized the administration for making poor decisions in the war, but added that it was more important to solve the problems in Iraq. This centrist and somewhat vague stance caused frustration among those in the Democratic party who favored immediate withdrawal. Clinton supported retaining and improving health benefits for veterans, and lobbied against the closure of several military bases.

Senator Clinton voted against the two major tax cuts packages introduced by President Bush, the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001

Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001

The Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 , was a sweeping piece of tax legislation in the United States by President George W. Bush...

and the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003

Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003

The Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 , was passed by the United States Congress on May 23, 2003 and signed into law by President George W. Bush on May 28, 2003...

, saying it was fiscally irresponsible to reopen the budget deficit. At the 2000 Democratic National Convention

2000 Democratic National Convention

The 2000 Democratic National Convention was a quadrennial presidential nominating convention for the Democratic Party. The convention nominated Vice President Al Gore as its candidate for President and Connecticut Senator Joe Lieberman as its candidate for Vice President. The convention was held at...

, Clinton had called for maintaining a budget surplus to pay down the national debt for future generations. At a fundraiser in 2004, she told a crowd of financial donors that "Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you" but that "We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."

In Clinton's first term as senator, New York's jobless rate rose by 0.7 percent after a nationwide recession. The state's manufacturing sector was especially beleaguered, losing about 170,000 jobs. In 2005, Clinton and Senator Lindsey Graham

Lindsey Graham

Lindsey Olin Graham is the senior U.S. Senator from South Carolina and a member of the Republican Party. Previously he served as the U.S. Representative for .-Early life, education and career:...

cosponsored the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition, which provides incentives and rewards for completely domestic American manufacturing companies. In 2003, Clinton convinced the information technology firm Tata Consultancy Services

Tata Consultancy Services

Tata Consultancy Services Limited is a global IT services, business solutions and outsourcing company headquartered in Mumbai, India. It is the largest provider of information technology in Asia and second largest provider of business process outsourcing services in India...

to open an office in Buffalo, New York

Buffalo, New York

Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...

, but some criticized the plan because Tata is also involved in the business of outsourcing. In 2004, Clinton co-founded and became the co-chair of the Senate India Caucus with the aid of USINPAC, a political action committee

Political action committee

In the United States, a political action committee, or PAC, is the name commonly given to a private group, regardless of size, organized to elect political candidates or to advance the outcome of a political issue or legislation. Legally, what constitutes a "PAC" for purposes of regulation is a...

. In 2005, Clinton voted against ratification of the Central America Free Trade Agreement, believing that it did not provide adequate environmental or labor standards. In this she differed with her husband, who supported CAFTA; the ratification was successful.

Senator Clinton led a bipartisan effort to bring broadband

Broadband

The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...

access to rural communities. She cosponsored the 21st Century Nanotechnology Research and Development Act, which encourages research and development in the field of nanotechnology

Nanotechnology

Nanotechnology is the study of manipulating matter on an atomic and molecular scale. Generally, nanotechnology deals with developing materials, devices, or other structures possessing at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometres...

. She included language in an energy bill to provide tax exempt bonding authority for environmentally-conscious construction projects, and introduced an amendment that funds job creation to repair, renovate and modernize public schools.

In 2005, Clinton was joined by former House Speaker

Speaker of the United States House of Representatives

The Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, or Speaker of the House, is the presiding officer of the United States House of Representatives...

Newt Gingrich

Newton Leroy "Newt" Gingrich is a U.S. Republican Party politician who served as the House Minority Whip from 1989 to 1995 and as the 58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999....

, who once led the Republican opposition to her husband's administration, in support of a proposal for incremental universal health care. She also worked with Bill Frist

Bill Frist

William Harrison "Bill" Frist, Sr. is an American physician, businessman, and politician. He began his career as an heir and major stockholder to the for-profit hospital chain of Hospital Corporation of America. Frist later served two terms as a Republican United States Senator representing...

, the Republican Senate Majority Leader, in support of modernizing medical records with computer technology to reduce human errors, such as misreading prescriptions.

During the 2005 debate over the use of filibuster

Filibuster

A filibuster is a type of parliamentary procedure. Specifically, it is the right of an individual to extend debate, allowing a lone member to delay or entirely prevent a vote on a given proposal...

s by Senate Democrats, which prevented some of President Bush's judicial nominations from being confirmed, Clinton was not part of the "Gang of 14

Gang of 14

The Gang of 14 was a term coined to describe the bipartisan group of Senators in the 109th United States Congress who successfully negotiated a compromise in the spring of 2005 to avoid the deployment of the so-called nuclear option over an organized use of the filibuster by Senate...

", a bipartisan group of senators who would support cloture but oppose the Republican threat to abolish the filibuster. However, she did vote in favor of cloture along with that group, thereby allowing the nominations to come to a vote. She subsequently voted against three of the nominees, but all were confirmed by the Senate.
Clinton voted against the confirmation of John Roberts

John Roberts

John Glover Roberts, Jr. is the 17th and current Chief Justice of the United States. He has served since 2005, having been nominated by President George W. Bush after the death of Chief Justice William Rehnquist...

as Chief Justice of the United States

Chief Justice of the United States

The Chief Justice of the United States is the head of the United States federal court system and the chief judge of the Supreme Court of the United States. The Chief Justice is one of nine Supreme Court justices; the other eight are the Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States...

, saying "I do not believe that the Judge has presented his views with enough clarity and specificity for me to in good conscience cast a vote on his behalf," but then said she hoped her concerns would prove to be unfounded. Roberts was confirmed by a solid majority, with half the Senate's Democrats voting for him and half against. She joined with about half of the Democratic Senators in support of the filibuster against the nomination of Samuel Alito

Samuel Alito

Samuel Anthony Alito, Jr. is an Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and has served on the court since January 31, 2006....

to the United States Supreme Court, and subsequently voted against his confirmation along with almost all Democratic members of the Senate. On the Senate floor, Clinton said Alito would "roll back decades of progress and roll over when confronted with an administration too willing to flaunt the rules and looking for a rubber stamp." Alito was confirmed in a vote split largely along party lines.

Clinton sought to establish an independent, bipartisan panel patterned after the 9/11 Commission to investigate the response to Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...

by the federal, state and local governments, but could not obtain the two-thirds majority needed to overcome procedural hurdles in the Senate.

In 2005, Clinton called for the Federal Trade Commission

Federal Trade Commission

The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1914 by the Federal Trade Commission Act...

to investigate how hidden sex scenes

Hot Coffee mod

The Hot Coffee mod is a normally inaccessible minigame in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, developed by Rockstar North. Public awareness of the existence of the minigame arrived with the release of the Hot Coffee mod, created for the version released in 2005 for Microsoft Windows...

showed up in the controversial video game

Computer and video games

A video game is an electronic game that involves human interaction with a user interface to generate visual feedback on a video device. The word video in video game traditionally referred to a raster display device, but following popularization of the term "video game", it now implies any type of...

Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas
Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is a 2004 open world action video game developed by British games developer Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It is the third 3D game in the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise, the fifth original console release and eighth game overall...

. Along with Senators Joe Lieberman

Joe Lieberman

Joseph Isadore "Joe" Lieberman is the senior United States Senator from Connecticut. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was the party's nominee for Vice President in the 2000 election. Currently an independent, he remains closely affiliated with the party.Born in Stamford, Connecticut,...

and Evan Bayh

Evan Bayh

Birch Evans "Evan" Bayh III is a lawyer, advisor and former Democratic politician who served as the junior U.S. Senator from Indiana from 1999 to 2011. He earlier served as the 46th Governor of Indiana from 1989 to 1997. Bayh is a current Fox News contributor as of March 14, 2011.Bayh first held...

, she introduced the Family Entertainment Protection Act

Family Entertainment Protection Act

The United States Family Entertainment Protection Act was a bill introduced by Senator Hillary Clinton , and co-sponsored by Senators Joe Lieberman , Tim Johnson and Evan Bayh on November 29, 2005...

, intended to protect children from inappropriate content found in video games. Similar bills have been filed in some states such as Michigan and Illinois, but were ruled to be unconstitutional.

In July 2004 and June 2006, Clinton voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment

Federal Marriage Amendment

The Federal Marriage Amendment H.J. Res. 56 was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution which would have limited marriage in the United States to unions of one man and one woman...

that sought to prohibit same-sex marriage. The proposed constitutional amendment fell well short of passage on both occasions. In June 2006, Clinton voted against the Flag Desecration Amendment

Flag Desecration Amendment

The Flag Desecration Amendment, often referred to as the flag burning amendment, is a controversial proposed constitutional amendment to the United States Constitution that would allow the United States Congress to statutorily prohibit expression of political views through the physical desecration...

, which failed to pass by one vote. Earlier, she attempted to reach a compromise by proposing the Flag Protection Act of 2005

Flag Protection Act of 2005

The Flag Protection Act of 2005 was a proposed United States federal law introduced by Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Robert Bennett. The law would have outlawed flag burning, and called for a punishment of one year in jail and a fine of $100,000....

, a legislative ban on flag burning (in cases where there was a threat to public safety) that would not require a constitutional amendment, but it was also voted down.

Looking to establish a "progressive infrastructure" to rival that of American conservatism

American conservatism

Conservatism in the United States has played an important role in American politics since the 1950s. Historian Gregory Schneider identifies several constants in American conservatism: respect for tradition, support of republicanism, preservation of "the rule of law and the Christian religion", and...

, Clinton played a formative role in conversations that led to the 2003 founding of former Clinton administration chief of staff John Podesta

John Podesta

John David Podesta was the fourth and final White House Chief of Staff under President Bill Clinton, from 1998 until 2001. He is the president of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in Washington, D.C., and is also a Visiting Professor of Law at the Georgetown University Law...

's Center for American Progress

Center for American Progress

The Center for American Progress is a progressive public policy research and advocacy organization. Its website states that the organization is "dedicated to improving the lives of Americans through progressive ideas and action." It has its headquarters in Washington D.C.Its President and Chief...

; shared aides with Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington

Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington is a nonprofit 501 organization that describes itself as "dedicated to promoting ethics and accountability in government and public life by targeting government officials – regardless of party affiliation – who sacrifice the common good to...

, founded in 2003; advised and nurtured the Clintons' former antagonist David Brock

David Brock

David Brock is an American journalist and author, the founder of the media watchdog group, Media Matters for America, and a Democratic political operative...

's Media Matters for America

Media Matters for America

Media Matters for America is a politically progressive media watchdog group which says it is "dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation in the U.S. media." Set up as a 501 non-profit organization, MMfA was founded in 2004 by journalist and...

, created in 2004; and following the 2004 Senate elections

United States Senate elections, 2004

The United States Senate election, 2004 was an election for one-third of the seats in the United States Senate which coincided with the re-election of George W. Bush as president and the United States House election, as well as many state and local elections. Senators who were elected in 1998,...

, successfully pushed new Democratic Senate leader Harry Reid

Harry Reid

Harry Mason Reid is the senior United States Senator from Nevada, serving since 1987. A member of the Democratic Party, he has been the Senate Majority Leader since January 2007, having previously served as Minority Leader and Minority and Majority Whip.Previously, Reid was a member of the U.S...

to create a Senate war room to handle daily political messaging.

Second term

Clinton opposed the Iraq War troop surge of 2007

Iraq War troop surge of 2007

In the context of the Iraq War, the surge refers to United States President George W. Bush's 2007 increase in the number of American troops in order to provide security to Baghdad and Al Anbar Province....

and supported a February 2007 non-binding Senate resolution against it, which failed to gain cloture

Cloture

In parliamentary procedure, cloture is a motion or process aimed at bringing debate to a quick end. It is also called closure or, informally, a guillotine. The cloture procedure originated in the French National Assembly, from which the name is taken. Clôture is French for "ending" or "conclusion"...

. In March 2007 she voted in favor of a war spending bill that required President Bush to begin withdrawing troops from Iraq within a certain deadline; it passed almost completely along party lines but was subsequently vetoed by President Bush. In May 2007 a compromise war funding bill that removed withdrawal deadlines but tied funding to progress benchmarks for the Iraqi government passed the Senate by a vote of 80-14 and would be signed by Bush; Clinton was one of those that voted against it. In August 2007 Clinton, following the lead of Armed Services Committee chair Carl Levin

Carl Levin

Carl Milton Levin is a Jewish-American United States Senator from Michigan, serving since 1979. He is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. He is a member of the Democratic Party....

, called on the Iraqi Parliament to replace Nouri al-Maliki

Nouri al-Maliki

Nouri Kamil Mohammed Hasan al-Maliki , also known as Jawad al-Maliki or Abu Esraa, is the Prime Minister of Iraq and the secretary-general of the Islamic Dawa Party. Al-Maliki and his government succeeded the Iraqi Transitional Government. He is currently in his second term as Prime Minister...

as Prime Minister of Iraq

Prime Minister of Iraq

The Prime Minister of Iraq is Iraq's head of government. Prime Minister was originally an appointed office, subsidiary to the head of state, and the nominal leader of the Iraqi parliament. Under the newly adopted constitution the Prime Minister is to be the country's active executive authority...

with "a less divisive and more unifying figure," saying that Maliki had failed to make progress in bridging differences between the hostile factions within Iraq. Maliki responded angrily to the suggestion, saying "There are American officials who consider Iraq as if it were one of their villages, for example Hillary Clinton and Carl Levin ... This is severe interference in our domestic affairs." Clinton responded to General David Petraeus

David Petraeus

David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...

's September 2007 Report to Congress on the Situation in Iraq

Report to Congress on the Situation in Iraq

The Report to Congress on the Situation in Iraq was a two-part report released on September 10, 2007 by General of the Multinational force in Iraq David H. Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker on progress by the Iraqi government in the ongoing Iraq War...

by saying, "I think that the reports that you provide to us really require a willing suspension of disbelief." Regarding the concurrent MoveOn.org ad controversy

MoveOn.org ad controversy

The MoveOn.org ad controversy began when the anti-war liberal advocacy group MoveOn.org published a full-page ad in The New York Times on September 10, 2007 accusing General David H. Petraeus of "cooking the books for the White House". The ad also labeled him "General Betray Us". The organization...

, Clinton voted against a Senate resolution condemning personal attacks on Petraeus, which passed 72-25. In September 2007 she voted in favor of a Senate resolution calling on the State Department to label the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps "a foreign terrorist organization", which passed 76-22.

In March 2007, in response to the dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy

Dismissal of U.S. attorneys controversy

The dismissal of U.S. Attorneys controversy was initiated by the unprecedented midterm dismissal of seven United States Attorneys on December 7, 2006 by the George W. Bush administration's Department of Justice. Congressional investigations focused on whether the Department of Justice and the White...

, Clinton called on Attorney General Alberto Gonzales

Alberto Gonzales

Alberto R. Gonzales was the 80th Attorney General of the United States. Gonzales was appointed to the post in February 2005 by President George W. Bush. Gonzales was the first Hispanic Attorney General in U.S. history and the highest-ranking Hispanic government official ever...

to resign, and launched an Internet campaign to gain petition signatures towards this end. In May 2007, following the Supreme Court's decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.
Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.
Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., 550 U.S. 618 , is an employment discrimination decision of the Supreme Court of the United States. Justice Alito held for the five-justice majority that employers cannot be sued under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act over race or gender pay discrimination...

to narrowly interpret the time period in which equal pay discrimination complaints must be filed, Clinton vowed to introduce legislation to statutorily expand this timeframe. In November 2007, following the eventual resignation of Gonzales, Clinton missed the 53–40 vote confirming Michael Mukasey as the new Attorney General, but had earlier said she opposed the nomination.

In May and June 2007, regarding the high-profile, hotly debated comprehensive immigration reform bill known as the Secure Borders, Economic Opportunity and Immigration Reform Act of 2007, Clinton twice voted against amendments that would have derailed the bill, thus moving forward the bill's chance of passage. She introduced a failed amendment to facilitate legal immigrants bringing other family members into the country. After not announcing her position until a week before the vote, she ayed on a cloture

Cloture

motion to bring the overall bill to a vote, which failed. When the bill was again brought forward, she continued to vote in favor of cloture motions to consider it. In October, Clinton voted in favor of a small subset of the failed bill, the DREAM Act

DREAM Act

The DREAM Act is an American legislative proposal first introduced in the Senate on August 1, 2001 and most recently reintroduced there on May 11, 2011....

, but it too failed to gain cloture.

In October 2007, Clinton signed her name to a request from her and 40 other Democratic senators to Mark P. Mays, head of Clear Channel Communications

Clear Channel Communications

Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...

and affiliate broadcaster of The Rush Limbaugh Show
The Rush Limbaugh Show
The Rush Limbaugh Show is an American talk radio show hosted by Rush Limbaugh on Premiere Radio Networks...

, to repudiate comments made by Rush Limbaugh

Rush Limbaugh

Rush Hudson Limbaugh III is an American radio talk show host, conservative political commentator, and an opinion leader in American conservatism. He hosts The Rush Limbaugh Show which is aired throughout the U.S. on Premiere Radio Networks and is the highest-rated talk-radio program in the United...

that referred to certain U.S. servicemen as "phony soldiers".

Clinton has enjoyed high approval ratings for her job as Senator within New York, reaching an all-time high of 72 to 74 percent approving (including half of Republicans) over 23 to 24 percent disapproving in December 2006, before her presidential campaign became active; by August 2007, after a half year of campaigning, it was still 64 percent over 34 percent.

In February 2008, Clinton voted in favor of an expanded version of the economic stimulus package crafted by the House and President Bush. The bill would have added benefits to senior citizens, disabled veterans, and the unemployed, but narrowly failed to break a filibuster. Due to campaigning, Clinton missed the subsequent final vote for the House-Bush version, which passed easily 81–16 and became the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008

Economic Stimulus Act of 2008

The Economic Stimulus Act of 2008 was an Act of Congress providing for several kinds of economic stimuli intended to boost the United States economy in 2008 and to avert a recession, or ameliorate economic conditions. The stimulus package was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on January...

. A few days later, Clinton also missed a key vote on whether to strip telecommunications company retroactive immunity from a new Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act update bill, an action that fell well short of passing; she similarly missed the final 68–29 vote on the Act updating.

During General Petraeus's April 2008 testimony before the Armed Services Committee, Clinton said that political progress in Iraq had not matched the security gains brought by the troop surge, that too much of the U.S. military was tied down in Iraq, and that "it's time to begin an orderly process of withdrawing our troops."

On June 24, 2008, Clinton received a warm reception as she returned to the Senate for the first time after the unsuccessful conclusion of her presidential campaign

Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2008

New York junior Senator and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton had expressed interest in the 2008 United States presidential election since at least October 2002, drawing media speculation on whether she would become a candidate. No woman has ever won the nomination of a major party in the...

three weeks earlier.

As the Financial crisis of 2007–2008 reached a peak with the liquidity crisis of September 2008, Clinton proposed a revival of the New Deal

New Deal

The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...

-era Home Owners' Loan Corporation

Home Owners' Loan Corporation

The Home Owners' Loan Corporation was a New Deal agency established in 1933 by the Home Owners' Loan Corporation Act under President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Its purpose was to refinance home mortgages currently in default to prevent foreclosure. This was accomplished by selling bonds to lenders in...

, to help homeowners refinance their mortgages. Writing in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, she said that "This is a sink-or-swim moment for America. We cannot simply catch our breath. We've got to swim for the shores." Regarding the proposed bailout of United States financial system, she initially pronounced the $700 billion resuce plan flawed, but said she would support it. On October 1, 2008, she voted in favor of the Senate legislation, HR1424, saying that it represented the interests of the American people; it passed the Senate 74–25.

Following the November 4, 2008, presidential election and the victory of Clinton's primary rival Barack Obama

Barack Obama

, Clinton requested a position within the Democratic Senate leadership or as a head of a potential task force to deal with health care reform. Party leaders did not want to dislodge any existing members, however, and no concrete offers came out of the talks, which continued after Obama offered a position in his cabinet to her.

On December 1, 2008, President-elect Barack Obama

Barack Obama

announced that Clinton would be his nominee for U.S. Secretary of State. Clinton said that "leaving the Senate is very difficult for me" and thanked New Yorkers, "who have for eight years given me the joy of a job I love, with the opportunity to work on issues I care about deeply, in a state that I cherish." Clinton's decision to leave the Senate set off a scramble to determine who Governor of New York

Governor of New York

The Governor of the State of New York is the chief executive of the State of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military and naval forces. The officeholder is afforded the courtesy title of His/Her...

David Paterson

David Alexander Paterson is an American politician who served as the 55th Governor of New York, from 2008 to 2010. During his tenure he was the first governor of New York of African American heritage and also the second legally blind governor of any U.S. state after Bob C. Riley, who was Acting...

would name to replace her, and resulted in the brief entry into politics for the first time of Caroline Kennedy

Caroline Kennedy

Caroline Bouvier Kennedy is an American author and attorney. She is a member of the influential Kennedy family and the only surviving child of U.S. President John F...

.

Later that month, during the automotive industry crisis of 2008, Clinton voted in favor of a $14 billion emergency bailout for U.S. automakers, but it failed to gain the 60 votes needed for cloture.

Confirmation hearings before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee

United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It is charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. The Foreign Relations Committee is generally responsible for overseeing and funding foreign aid programs as...

began on January 13, 2009, a week before the Obama inauguration; two days later, the Committee voted 16–1 to approve Clinton. Republican Senator David Vitter

David Vitter

David Vitter is the junior United States Senator from Louisiana and a member of the Republican Party. Previously, he served in the United States House of Representatives, representing the suburban Louisiana's 1st congressional district. He served as a member of the Louisiana House of...

of Louisiana was the lone dissenting vote in the committee. In anticipation of her confirmation as the 67th Secretary of State, Clinton attended an emotional farewell party on January 14, where said that being in the Senate “has been the greatest experience of my life” and that departing was “like leaving family.” Clinton cast her last Senate vote on January 15, supporting the release of the second $350 million for the Troubled Assets Relief Program

Troubled Assets Relief Program

The Troubled Asset Relief Program is a program of the United States government to purchase assets and equity from financial institutions to strengthen its financial sector that was signed into law by U.S. President George W. Bush on October 3, 2008...

, a measure which passed 52–42. She gave a final Senate address later that day, spending much of her time thanking her fellow members for their support after the events of September 11 and taking the unusual step of entering all of her staff's names into the Congressional Record
Congressional Record
The Congressional Record is the official record of the proceedings and debates of the United States Congress. It is published by the United States Government Printing Office, and is issued daily when the United States Congress is in session. Indexes are issued approximately every two weeks...

. Later that night, she attended the final fundraiser possible to help retire her presidential campaign debt. The Manhattan event featured Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi

Jon Bon Jovi is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and actor, best known as the founder, occasional rhythm guitarist, and lead singer of rock band Bon Jovi, which was named after him...

, and Clinton said it was a “very nostalgic and bittersweet time;” when she also said it was her last political event, some in the crowd of supporters shouted out "2016".

Following the inauguration of Obama, Clinton's confirmation was not done by voice vote the same day, due to objections from Republican Senator John Cornyn

John Cornyn

John Cornyn, III is the junior United States Senator for Texas, serving since 2003. He is a member of the Republican Party. He was elected Chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee for the 111th U.S. Congress....

of Texas, who was still concerned about financial disclosure procedures related to Bill Clinton. Clinton was then confirmed as Secretary of State in the Senate by a roll call vote of 94–2 on January 21, 2009. Vitter and Republican Jim DeMint

Jim DeMint

James Warren "Jim" DeMint is the junior U.S. Senator from South Carolina, serving since 2005. He is a member of the Republican Party and a leader in the Tea Party movement. He previously served as the U.S. Representative for from 1999 to 2005.-Early life and education:DeMint was born in...

of South Carolina voted against the confirmation. Clinton was administered the oath of office of Secretary of State by longtime friend Judge Kathryn A. Oberly, and resigned from the Senate the same day. On January 23, 2009, New York Governor David Paterson

David Paterson

named Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand

Kirsten Gillibrand

Kirsten Elizabeth Rutnik Gillibrand is an attorney and the junior United States Senator from the state of New York and a member of the Democratic Party...

as Clinton's successor.

Electoral history

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