# 82nd United States Congress

The 82nd 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, 1951, to January 3, 1953, during the last two years of President Harry S. Truman's second term in office.
The apportionment of seats in this House of Representatives was based on the 1940 United States census.
Both chambers had a Democratic majority (albeit reduced from the 81st Congress), and with President Truman, maintained an overall federal government trifecta.

## Major events

* March 29, 1951: Ethel and Julius Rosenberg were convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage. On April 5 they were sentenced to receive the death penalty.
* April 11, 1951: President Truman relieved General Douglas MacArthur of his Far Eastern commands.
* April 13, 1951: Congress passed a large defense budget 372 votes for the budget and 44 votes against the budget. The budget was intended to help the United States combat communism.
* August 31, 1951: The United States Senate passes the Mutual Security Act by a vote of 61 votes in favor and 5 votes against. The act provided $7.5 billion for foreign military assistance and food aid to America's allies, primarily the United Kingdom. The vote was condemned by the government of the Soviet Union and praised by the government of the United Kingdom.
* September 5, 1951: Treaty of San Francisco: In San Francisco, California, 48 nations signed a peace treaty with Japan to formally end the Pacific War.
* October 24, 1951: President Truman declared an official end to war with Germany.
* November 10, 1951: Direct dial coast-to-coast telephone service began in the United States.
* December 31, 1951: The Marshall Plan expired after distributing more than $13.3 billion USD in foreign aid to rebuild Europe.
* March 29, 1952: President Truman announced that he will not seek reelection.
* June 19, 1952: The Special Forces created.
* July 25, 1952: Puerto Rico became a Commonwealth of the United States, an unincorporated organized territory, with the ratification of its constitution.
* November 4, 1952: 1952 United States presidential election: Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower defeated Democrat Adlai Stevenson
* November 4, 1952: National Security Agency founded.

## Major legislation

* October 10, 1951: Mutual Security Act, ch. 479, 65 Stat. 373
* June 27, 1952: Immigration and Nationality Act (McCarran-Walter Act), Pub. L. 82–414
* July 14, 1952: McGuire Act, Pub. L. 82–542, 15 U.S.C. § 42(a)
* July 16, 1952: Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act, Pub. L. 82–550
* July 16, 1952: Federal Coal Mine Safety Act of 1952, Pub. L. 82–552
* July 16, 1952: Wire Fraud Act of 1952, Pub. L. 82–555

## Constitutional amendments

* February 27, 1951: Twenty-second Amendment to the United States Constitution, setting a term limit for election and overall time of service to the office of President of the United States, was ratified by the requisite number of states (then 36) to become part of the Constitution

## Treaties

* March 20, 1952: Treaty of San Francisco ratified

## Party summary
### Senate

| | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
| | Democratic | Independent | Republican | Total | Vacant |
| End of previous Congress | 53 | 0 | 43 | 96 | 0 |
| Begin | 49 | 0 | 47 | 96 | 0 |
| March 8, 1951 | 48 | 0 | 47 | 95 | 1 |
| March 19, 1951 | 49 | 0 | 47 | 96 | 0 |
| April 18, 1951 | 49 | 0 | 46 | 95 | 1 |
| April 23, 1951 | 50 | 0 | 46 | 96 | 0 |
| November 29, 1951 | 50 | 0 | 45 | 95 | 1 |
| December 10, 1951 | 50 | 0 | 46 | 96 | 0 |
| July 28, 1952 | 49 | 0 | 46 | 95 | 1 |
| August 29, 1952 | 49 | 0 | 47 | 96 | 0 |
| November 5, 1952 | 47 | 0 | 49 | 96 | 0 |
| December 31, 1952 | 47 | 0 | 48 | 95 | 1 |
| Latest voting share | 49% | 0% | 51% | | |
| Beginning of the next Congress | 47 | 1 | 48 | 96 | 0 |

### House of Representatives

| | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
| | Democratic | Independent | Republican | Other | Total | Vacant |
| End of previous Congress | 259 | 0 | 168 | 2 | 429 | 6 |
| Begin | 235 | 1 | 199 | 0 | 435 | 0 |
| End | 228 | 1 | 198 | 0 | 427 | 8 |
| Final voting share | 53.4% | 0.2% | 46.4% | 0.0% | | |
| Beginning of next Congress | 211 | 1 | 221 | 0 | 433 | 2 |

## Leadership
### Senate

* President: Alben W. Barkley (D)
* President pro tempore: Kenneth McKellar (D)

#### Majority (Democratic) party

* Majority leader: Ernest McFarland
* Majority whip: Lyndon B. Johnson
* Democratic Caucus Secretary: Brien McMahon
* Policy Committee Chairman: Ernest McFarland

#### Minority (Republican) party

* Minority leader: Kenneth S. Wherry, until November 29, 1951
** Styles Bridges, from January 8, 1952
* Minority whip: Leverett Saltonstall
* Republican Conference Chairman: Eugene Millikin
* Republican Conference Secretary: Milton Young
* National Senatorial Committee Chair: Owen Brewster
* Policy Committee Chairman: Robert A. Taft

### House of Representatives

* Speaker: Sam Rayburn (D)

#### Majority (Democratic) party

* Majority leader: John W. McCormack
* Majority whip: J. Percy Priest
* Democratic Caucus Chairman: Jere Cooper
* Democratic Campaign Committee Chairman: Michael J. Kirwan

#### Minority (Republican) party

* Minority leader: Joseph W. Martin Jr.
* Minority whip: Leslie C. Arends
* Republican Conference Chairman: Clifford R. Hope
* Policy Committee Chairman: Joseph W. Martin Jr.
* Republican Campaign Committee Chairman: Leonard W. Hall

## Caucuses

* House Democratic Caucus
* Senate Democratic Caucus

## Members
### Senate

Senators are popularly 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 1 meant their term ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1952; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1954; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1956.

### House of Representatives

The names of members of the House of Representatives are preceded by their district numbers.

## Changes in membership

The count below reflects changes from the beginning of this Congress.

### House of Representatives
## Committees

Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On the committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee.

### Joint committees

* Atomic Energy (Chairman: Sen. Brien McMahon; Vice Chairman: Rep. Carl T. Durham)
* Conditions of Indian Tribes (Special)
* Defense Production (Chairman: Sen. Burnet R. Maybank; Vice Chairman: Rep. Paul Brown)
* Disposition of Executive Papers
* Economic (Chairman: Rep. Joseph C. O'Mahoney)
* Immigration and Nationality Policy
* Legislative Budget
* The Library (Chairman: Sen. Theodore F. Green)
* Navajo-Hopi Indian Administration
* Printing (Chairman: Sen. Carl Hayden; Vice Chairman: Rep. Thomas B. Stanley)
* Railroad Retirement Legislation
* Reduction of Nonessential Federal Expenditures (Chairman: Sen. Harry F. Byrd; Vice Chairman: Rep. Robert L. Doughton)
* Taxation (Chairman: Rep. Robert L. Doughton; Vice Chairman: Sen. Walter F. George)

## Employees
### 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: Luther H. Evans
* Public Printer of the United States: John J. Deviny

### Senate

* Chaplain: Frederick Brown Harris (Methodist)
* Parliamentarian: Charles Watkins
* Secretary: Leslie Biffle
* Librarian: Richard D. Hupman
* Secretary for the Majority: Felton McLellan Johnston
* Secretary for the Minority: J. Mark Trice
* Sergeant at Arms: Joseph C. Duke

### House of Representatives

* Chaplain: Bernard Braskamp (Presbyterian)
* Clerk: Ralph R. Roberts
* Doorkeeper: William Mosley "Fishbait" Miller
* Parliamentarian: Lewis Deschler
* Postmaster: Finis E. Scott
* Reading Clerks: George J. Maurer (D) and Alney E. Chaffee (R)
* Sergeant at Arms: Joseph H. Callahan