Senator Jeff Sessions Research Paper Examples

Abstract

The paper discusses the political life of Senator Jeff Sessions. It traces Sessions’ life from birth to his entry into politics. The paper appreciates Sessions’ experiences both as a practicing attorney and in the Armed Forces Reserves. In addition, particular attention is paid to Sessions’ legislative agenda which is read together with his ideological leanings and his party’s persuasions. The paper equally looks at the Sessions’ fundraisers and the effect they may have in his legislative agenda in the Senate.

Introduction

Senator Jeff Sessions, a junior senator, from the State of Alabama has been in Washington DC for the last seventeen years. A decent examination of the activities, political persuasions and participation of the Republican Senator suggests a man keen to ensure the rule of law, promote a lean government, champion the rights of the men in uniform and protect the interests of the people of America. In addition, the senator remains an invaluable resource in the provision of tax reliefs to the people of America courtesy of his membership in the Budget Committee. This paper shall conclusively analyze Senator Jeff Session’s political life. The paper shall consider some of the issues that the senator has put on the forefronts, the legislation he has been keen to participate in and the political persuasions he holds within his Republican flock. From the outset, it is imperative to appreciate Senator Sessions is a stickler of the rule of law and fighter for the men in uniform.

Brief biography

The political life of Senator Sessions cannot be considered from a vacuum. It is advisable to take consideration of his background towards the efforts at understanding his political underpinning and the principles that undergird his reasoning and decision making. In that context, in this section, the paper shall consider his background albeit briefly.
Senator Sessions was born in Selma, Alabama on the 24th of December 1946. Raised by a store owner, Sessions was cultured with the virtues of honesty, hard work and respect for both God and humanity. He attended a number of schools graduating with a BA from the Huntingdon College. He would proceed to study law, graduating with a Degree in Law. He has worked in several places including within the US Army under the United States Army Reserve between 1973 and 1986. He then practiced law as an attorney in Russellville, Alabama. He would later get nominated as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama. He would hold that position for 12 years before joining the United States Senate in 1997 as the representative of the State of Alabama. Sessions is a family man, and is married to one wife and has three children and a number of grandchildren. He believes in the promotion of the core family values that the State of Alabama subscribes to. From the outset, the brief biography define Senator Sessions has an accomplished man who has participated innumerably towards the growth and stability of the United States. Further analysis attests to that postulation. However, two points to take home from the biography are his legal background having had a legal training and practiced privately and as a state attorney and his stint at the military which has proved to have influenced his life in fundamental ways.

Political Contributions

Like every senator, Senator Jeff Sessions has politically contributed to the American politics. In the ordinary scheme of American politics, his contributions have been reflected in the number of legislations he has supported/opposed, his voting patterns, his inclinations to party and bipartisan policies, his relations with his constituents, among other avenues. In this section, Senator Sessions’ contributions shall be analyzed from a specific point of view. The paper shall particularly focus on his committee assignments then analyze the legislations that Sessions has sponsored or supported.
Given the current Republic majority in both the lower and upper chambers, Senator Sessions, being one of the senior members of the party holds a number of committee chairmanships. Interestingly, while he sits in the Budget Committee as a ranking member, he was cheated from its chairmanship by fellow Republican Senator Enzi. Senator Sessions stands as a senior ranking member of the Budget Committee. Within the Budget Committee, Senator Sessions has been at the forefronts in advocating the reduction of taxes on the people. He argues that government should be limited so that its budgetary needs are minimal. This pro-lean government argument, he believes, would lead to a lower tax burden on the current and future generations. This by extension reveals his fiscal conservatism. In addition, Senator Sessions has shown considerable antipathy towards the taxation of the wealthy. He believes in limited taxation and strongly resists taxation against the wealthy as a form of redistribution of wealth. The ideology Senator Sessions subscribes to advocates trade and engaging in business. The Senator believes that people should be encouraged to trade and, therefore, rejects the redistributionist tax system that he argues discourages hard work.
Indeed, in his philosophy for the family in Alabama, Senator Sessions consistently advocates limited federal spending and tax cuts that advantage American families. He has never relented on his quest for a lean government. In addition, Senator Sessions has often recited that his financial policy objectives aim to limit the national debt. He advocates less debt so that the future generations are not necessarily overburdened by the current generations. His approach is short of republicanism which advocates libertarian system of government with the institution of the government charged with the provision of security and maintenance of the rule of law. Further, Senator Sessions holds strongly conservative principles on the family and life. He is against same sex marriages and supports only restricted abortion rights revealing a heavily inclined pro-life trajectory. Further, Senator Sessions has revealed the extent of libertarianism in his stand on gun ownership. He asserts that people must not be given absolute gun ownership rights. Senator Sessions has also been accused of caring less about the poor. He ranks among politicians who have voiced considerable opposition to the Obamacare health plan and its expansionist agenda.
Pundits have labeled Senator Sessions has the intellectual leader against immigration amnesty. Indeed, Senator Sessions ranks among the hardliners who believe that illegal aliens should be deported. Interestingly and to his advantage, he has been confirmed as the chairman of the subcommittee on Immigration, Border Security and Citizenship. Within that context, he directly deals with immigration, refugees, citizenship and plays an oversight role on the Department of Homeland Security. Senator Sessions has strongly opposed the amnesty recently granted by President Obama, under the exercise of an Executive Order. Sessions and his like have termed the president’s move unlawful and voiced concern over the right of the American citizens over that of illegal aliens. He argues that America runs the risk of making its territory safe for illegal immigrants to the detriment of its citizens. So strong are his convictions that upon being confirmed as the subcommittee chair, he proposed to change the name of the subcommittee so that it is in sync with the interests of the people of America. Further, in demonstrating his consistency against illegal immigrants and all together showing his solidarity with the Republican base, he recently opposed the bill on border security proposed by House Homeland Security Chairman Michael McCaul. The bone of contention leading to his opposition was the alleged failure by McCaul to include stringent border control rules. In fact, according to Senator Sessions, the promise to work around immigration and give a permanent solution is one of the legitimate expectations of the electorate response for the Republican midterm election win. He insists, passionately, that the electorate must not be let down and the Republican led Congress must deliver. In addition, he opposed Obama’s nominee for the position of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Senator Sessions, in his arguments has advocated stringent border control rules that resonate well with the republican base. Further, he has shown less concern with immigrants especially the undocumented group. When taking over the subcommittee on immigration chairmanship, the senator remarkably commented that he would make life in America tougher for illegal immigrants. This approach is arguably in line with his rule of law convictions. He believes illegality should not be rewarded under the veil of humanity and that persons who violate the border rules of the United States of America should be automatically deported. His line of thought is not strange given his state has held traditionally conservative views on such areas as immigration. One, however, is left to wonder whether Senator Sessions, a lawyer by training, has a fiber in him for humanity. His tough stand on immigration appears to suggest that such a fiber is either missing or it has highly been suppressed.
Sessions is also a ranking member of the Subcommittee on Administrative Oversight and the Courts. This subcommittee is concerned with judiciary and the delivery of justice. In it, they (Sessions and other members) oversee court administration and management, judicial rules and procedures and legal reform and liability issues. Sessions’ membership and by extension contribution is invaluable given his legal background and interaction with the American legal system. In fact, it can be argued that his passion for the rule of law and accessibility of justice to the people inform most of his contributions in this subcommittee. It should not be lost on us that Senator Sessions is a stickler of the law and would see to it that the judiciary and the Department of Justice, in their dispensation of justice promote equity and fairness.
Another subcommittee where Sessions’ contribution is impressive and invaluable is the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security. It should be appreciated that Sessions has often applied himself to the protection of the people of America and most importantly the provision and safeguards of the rights of the uniformed personnel. In this committee, Sessions’ concern has often been the enforcement of anti-terrorism policy and consideration of laws governing information. Sessions’ has innumerably made reference to his stint in the military as informing his principles and decisions.
Senator Sessions’ contributions to the defense committees cannot go unmentioned. Currently, he chairs the Subcommittee on Strategic Forces. This is a subcommittee of the armed forces services which is concerned with strategic defense matters including nuclear and strategic forces, intelligence programs, space programs, ballistic missile defense, among others. The ignominy of their responsibility should be read alongside the fact that the United States is not only the strongest military powerhouse, but that it invests heavily almost a fifth of its budget in the military. Therefore, playing an oversight role on the armed forces is not an easy function and Senator Sessions employs his enviable record of legal training and service in the military in discharging the same. It should go on record that Senator Sessions is strongly in favor of defense and security of the American people and its territory.
Senator Sessions is also a member of other subcommittees where he participates aggressively and contributes modestly to the development and growth of the United States. The other committees include Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, Subcommittee on Airland, Subcommittee on Seapower, Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Subcommittee on Water and Wildlife, Subcommittee on Green Jobs and the New Economy, Subcommittee on Clean Air and Nuclear Power. In all these committees, the contributions by Senator Sessions have been appreciated.

Sponsored legislation

Senator Sessions has sponsored a number of legislation. In this section, the paper shall consider the legislation sponsored by Senator Sessions. The approach shall be on two fronts. The paper shall briefly mention the current bills in the Senate under Sessions’ sponsorship and give their status on the one part. On the second part, the paper shall analyze legislations proper sponsored by Senator Sessions. As at now, four bills are in the house under the sponsorship of Senator Sessions co-sponsored by other legislators. These bills are s. 216, the National Prostate Cancer Plan Act which has since been read twice in the Senate; s. 433 a bill to establish a benefit calculating methodology with respect to currency undervaluation for purposes of countervailing duty investigations which is currently with the Finance Committee; s. 427 a bill for the award of Congressional Gold Medal to the Foot Soldiers who participated in select American events that shaped American history currently with the Committee on Banking and Urban Affairs; lastly s. AMDT whose purpose Senator Sessions is yet to release when he proposes the amendment.
Be that as it may, Senator Sessions has sponsored a number of legislation already in operation. The paper shall briefly enumerate some of the legislation in this section. From the outset, it is imperative to note that Senator Sessions has concentrated in three main areas in as far as legislation is concerned. These are immigration, military/defense and the economy. According to OpenSecrets.org, in 2014 the senator ranked position 97 out of a possible 103 in terms of sponsored bills and position 87 in terms of co-sponsored bills. In 2015, he successfully sponsored eight bills while co-sponsoring 150 bills.
Further, the Senator’s legislative agenda has a direct correlation with his sponsors. According to OpenSecrets.org, Senator Sessions’ five main campaign contributors were McWane Inc., Drummond Co., Maynard, Cooper & Gale, Smith’s Inc., and HealthSouth Corp. These companies were found to have been participating in the following areas, of which Senator Sessions incidentally has interests given his legislative agenda. These areas are as follows leadership PACs, Oil and Gas, Defense Aerospace, Law Firms and Miscellaneous Defense.
In this section, the paper shall specifically focus on statutes including resolutions sponsored or co-sponsored by Senator Sessions in a bid to showcase his legislative agenda as has been intimated to in the foregoing discussion. Senator Sessions co-sponsored the Hezbollah International Financing Prevention Act 2014. This Act’s main purpose as the citation suggests was to limit and or curtail the financing of a terrorist group, Hezbollah. Senator Sessions’ contribution to the fight against terrorist manifested in among others, his contribution to the Act. He equally sponsored the resolution that designated April 2014 as the National Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia Awareness Month. This showcased his concerns for the health of the people of America and his support for preventive medication especially in relation to the future generations. He also sponsored resolution S. Res 472 which honored Dr. James Schlesinger, former secretary for Defense, Energy and one time director of the Central Intelligence Agency. This particular resolution among others showcased his admiration for officers who have served the United States with dedication. He has co-sponsored the Keep Our Communities Safe Act which essentially attempts to provide security within the homeland by dealing with crime at the domestic level. He equally co-sponsored the Protecting Water and Property Rights Act 2014. The same shows his believe in private property and further reinforces his ideology on lean government essentially limited to the provision of security and other critical services to the people. According to govtrack.us, Senator Sessions missed 123 roll call votes out of a total 5789 reflecting a 2.1% absentee rate against the median of 1.7% for lifetime senators.

Conclusion

In overall, it is arguable that Senator Sessions’ performance is above average. In the last 17 years of his life in politics, he has been at the forefronts advocating principles he believes in. He stands out as a man of conviction set to improve society. It is in that light that one must appreciate his ideologies when analyzing and critiquing his school of thought. He is moderately conservative, believes in a lean government, a stringent immigration law advocate and a firm believer in family. It should equally be appreciated that the senator, having served in the military, is a strong supporter of the rights of the uniformed forces. In his Republican Party, he offers leadership options and has taken up the challenges well in dispensing the duties bestowed on him as a member or chairman of various senate committees and subcommittees. His consistency and principle is admirable given the times that legislators in Washington face. He has remarked in the past that his duty is to protect not the interest of the lobbyists who have the money, but to promote the silent interests of the people. As such, he has portrayed himself as an advocate of the silent voices. That Senator Sessions has been in the senate since 1997 equally demonstrates the fact that Alabama remains comfortable with his leadership.

References

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Boyle, M. (2015, January 20). Sen. Sessions: McCaul Bill Breaks Republican Promise to Voters on Immigration. Breitbart, p. 4. Retrieved from http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/01/20/sen-jeff-sessions-explains-mccauls-new-border-bill-fails-to-adequately-fix-immigration-issues/
Clyne, M. (2015, January 26). Sen Sessions Fights to Block Rep McCaul's Border Bill. Newsmax, p. 9.
Congres.Gov. (2015, February 14). Sen. Jeff Sessions. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from Congress. Gov: https://www.congress.gov/member/jeff-sessions/1548?pageSort=desc&page=3
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govtrack.us. (2015, February 14). Sen. Jefferson Sessions. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from govtrack.us: https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/jefferson_sessions/300088
Jeff Sessions. (2015, February 14). Bills Summary and Status. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from Jeff Sessions: http://www.sessions.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/sponsored-legislation
Jeff Sessions. (2015, February 14). Biography of U.S. Senator Jeff Sessions of Alabama. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from Jeff Sessions: http://www.sessions.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/biography
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Johnson, B. (2015, January 9). DHS Funding Debate Starts: Main House Bill to Defund Immigration Orders Gets Jeff Sessions’ Support. pjmedia, p. 7. Retrieved from http://pjmedia.com/blog/dhs-funding-debate-starts-main-house-bill-to-defund-immigration-orders-gets-jeff-sessions-support/
On The Issues. (2015, February 12). Jeff Sessions on Immigration. On The Issues, p. 6. Retrieved from http://www.ontheissues.org/international/Jeff_Sessions_Immigration.htm
OpenSecrets.org. (2015, February 14). Sen. Jeff Sessions, https://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/bills.php?cycle=2014&cid=N00003062&type=I. Retrieved February 14, 2015, from OpenSecrets.org.