Elected Senate versus House of Lords

The American Senate is vaguely similar to the House of Lords. In this regard it is the second chamber of a bicameral governing institution. The Americans have a congress, the British have a parliament. One thing that appears to unite the US Senate and the House of Lords is the extreme age of many of the members. It used to be said that the Lords were in God's waiting room. Now there are murmurings on Capitol Hill about the age and competence of some senators.

Robert Byrd is a senator from West Virginia. He was born just as the First World War ended. It makes him 90. Some think being as old as that is not the best thing for a senator to be. Others think it an outright impudence that the subject is mentioned. Yesterday (Wednesday) he was managing a two-hour Senate Appropriations Committee hearing on the Iraq war that for the time being silenced critics who say he’s no longer fit to serve as chairman. The average age of the Senate is 63, which implies half are in the bus pass club!

The House of Lords also has a lot of older members. It is not unusual for centenarians to be cogitating on the latest piece of legislation. Lord Shinwell was over 100 and still going. On his 100th birthday he came out of the chamber to greet both Neil Kinnock, the then Labour leader, and the press. Egged on by a tabloid hack, the peer leaned forward to Kinnock and said "You'll get nowhere by grinning all the time!" and Kinnock went a violent shade of carrot red. When you get old you can say what you want more or less. Senator Byrd has told his detractors to "Shut up".

Those campaigning in the UK for an elected second chamber should look at the US Senate. Yes, it's elected, but unless you've done something really wrong and even that may not matter, you get to stay there until you snuff it or get wheeled out. The American voters don't get much say in the matter. In fact, if the Senate turned into a sort of House of Lords, probably not that many would know or care.

Senator Byrd has had been in hospital twice this year. He uses a frame on occasions to get around. The health and stamina of the senator has been a question mark for months because of his weakening physical condition. His mobility was limited further in February by a fall at his home, the subsequent discovery of a urinary tract infection and an allergic reaction to medication that put him into hospital. All this leads to the speculation.

Byrd is the longest-serving senator in history. Probably of any parliament or congress for that matter. And because senators go on and on, people come to believe that they are there for ever. A kind of perpetual politician. Elections come and go, but the senators stay the course. I get the feeling that these rumblings are not about his age, but about how the Congress is adminstered.

Robert Byrd, is currently president pro tempore of the Senate, which makes him third in line to the presidency. That is why he is still keen to demonstrate his abilities, no doubt. But are the American people so sure?