United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations

The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the U.S. Senate charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. It is generally responsible for authorizing and overseeing foreign aid programs; arms sales and training for national allies; and holding confirmation hearings for high-level positions in the Department of State. Its sister committee in the House of Representatives is the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Along with the Finance and Judiciary committees, the Foreign Relations Committee is among the oldest in the Senate, dating to the initial creation of committees in 1816. It has played a leading role in several important treaties and foreign policy initiatives throughout U.S. history, including the Alaska Purchase, the establishment of the United Nations, and the passage of the Marshall Plan. The committee has also produced eight U.S. presidents—Andrew Jackson, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Benjamin Harrison, Warren Harding, John F. Kennedy, Barack Obama, and Joe Biden (Buchanan and Biden serving as chair)—and 19 secretaries of state. Notable members have included Arthur Vandenberg, Henry Cabot Lodge, and William Fulbright.

The Foreign Relations Committee is considered one of the most powerful and prestigious in the Senate, due to its long history, broad influence on U.S. foreign policy, jurisdiction over all diplomatic nominations, and its being the only Senate committee to deliberate and report treaties.

From 2021 to 2023, the Foreign Relations Committee was chaired by Democratic senator Bob Menendez of New Jersey, until he stepped down as chair after facing federal corruption charges.

Role

In 1943, a confidential analysis of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by British scholar Isaiah Berlin for the Foreign Office stated:

The Senate of the United States ... keeps a close watch on foreign policy, not merely in theory but in practice. The two-thirds majority of the Senate needed for the ratification of all foreign treaties is only the best known of its powers, but its general control over all legislation and its power of veto over the appointment of ambassadors, and other high public officials, and the influence of its views over public opinion, give it a unique position in the determination of United States foreign policy. The organ within the Senate which moulds this policy is the Foreign Relations Committee, which has in its power to alter, delay and, under certain political circumstances, to veto almost any piece of major policy in this field.

History

Between 1887 and 1907, Alabama Democrat John Tyler Morgan played a leading role on the committee. Morgan called for a canal linking the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through Nicaragua, enlarging the merchant marine and the Navy, and acquiring Hawaii, Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Cuba. He expected Latin American and Asian markets would become a new export market for Alabama's cotton, coal, iron, and timber. The canal would make trade with the Pacific much more feasible, and an enlarged military would protect that new trade. By 1905, most of his dreams had become reality, with the canal passing through Panama instead of Nicaragua.

File:Refusing to give the lady a seat - Rollin Kirby Trim.jpg

Refusing to give the lady [Peace Treaty of Versailles] a seat—by Senators Borah, Lodge and Johnson, c. 1919

During World War II, the committee took the lead in rejecting traditional isolationism and designing a new internationalist foreign policy based on the assumption that the United Nations would be a much more effective force than the old discredited League of Nations. Of special concern was the insistence that Congress play a central role in postwar foreign policy, as opposed to its ignorance of the main decisions made during the war. Republican senator Arthur Vandenberg played the central role.

File:Senator Wayne Morse with Senator William Fulbright at the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, 1966.jpg

Committee chair Senator J. William Fulbright (left) with Senator Wayne Morse during a hearing on the Vietnam War in 1966

In 1966, as tensions over the Vietnam War escalated, the committee set up hearings on possible relations with Communist China. Witnesses, especially academic specialists on East Asia, suggested to the American public that it was time to adopt a new policy of containment without isolation. The hearings Indicated that American public opinion toward China had moved away from hostility and toward cooperation. The hearings had a long-term impact when Richard Nixon became president, discarded containment, and began a policy of détente with China. The problem remained of how to deal simultaneously with the Chinese government on Taiwan after formal recognition was accorded to the Beijing government. The committee drafted the Taiwan Relations Act (US, 1979) which enabled the United States both to maintain friendly relations with Taiwan and to develop fresh relations with China.

In response to conservative criticism that the state department lacked hardliners, President Ronald Reagan in 1981 nominated Ernest W. Lefever as Assistant Secretary of State. Lefever performed poorly at his confirmation hearings and the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations rejected his nomination by vote of 4–13, prompting Lefever to withdraw his name. Elliot Abrams filled the position.

Republican senator Jesse Helms, a staunch conservative, was committee chair in the late 1990s. He pushed for reform of the UN by blocking payment of U.S. membership dues.

Bertie Bowman served as a staffer on the FRC from 1966 to 1990 and as the hearing coordinator from 2000 to 2021.

Members, 119th Congress

Majority	Minority
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Jim Risch, Idaho, Chair Pete Ricketts, Nebraska Dave McCormick, Pennsylvania Steve Daines, Montana Bill Hagerty, Tennessee John Barrasso, Wyoming Mike Lee, Utah Rand Paul, Kentucky Ted Cruz, Texas Rick Scott, Florida John Curtis, Utah John Cornyn, Texas	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire, Ranking Member Chris Coons, Delaware Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Jeff Merkley, Oregon Cory Booker, New Jersey Brian Schatz, Hawaii Chris Van Hollen, Maryland Tammy Duckworth, Illinois Jacky Rosen, Nevada

Subcommittees

Subcommittees	Chair	Ranking Member
Africa and Global Health Policy	Ted Cruz (R-TX)	Cory Booker (D-NJ)
East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy	Pete Ricketts (R-NE)	Chris Coons (D-DE)
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Steve Daines (R-MT)	Chris Murphy (D-CT)
Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	Mike Lee (R-UT)	Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism	Dave McCormick (R-PA)	Jacky Rosen (D-NV)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development	Bill Hagerty (R-TN)	Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	John Curtis (R-UT)	Tim Kaine (D-VA)

Chairs (1816–present)

File:Senate Foreign Relations Committee 160th Anniversity cover.jpg

1976 publication of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on the occasion of its 160th anniversary

Former chairs are listed below.

Name	Party	State	Start	End
	Democratic-Republican	VA	1816	1818
	Democratic-Republican	NC	1818	1819
	Democratic-Republican	LA	1819	1820
	Democratic-Republican	VA	1820	1821
	Federalist	NY	1821	1822
	Democratic-Republican	VA	1822	1825
	Democratic-Republican	NC	1825	1826
	Democratic-Republican	NY	1826	1827
	Democratic-Republican	NC	1827	1828
	Democratic	VA	1828	1832
	Democratic	GA	1832	1833
	Democratic	PA	1833	1834
	Whig	KY	1834	1836
	Democratic	PA	1836	1841
	Whig	VA	1841	1842
	Whig	VA	1842	1845
	Democratic	OH	1845	1846
	Democratic	AR	1846	1848
	Democratic	IN	1848	1849
	Democratic	MO	1849
	Democratic	AL	1849	1850
	Democratic	MS	1850	1851
	Democratic	VA	1851	1861
	Republican	MA	1861	1871
	Republican	PA	1871	1877
	Republican	ME	1877	1879
	Democratic	CT	1879	1881
	Republican	RI	1881
	Republican	VT	1881
	Republican	MN	1881	1883
	Republican	CA	1883	1886
	Republican	OH	1886	1893
	Democratic	AL	1893	1895
	Republican	OH	1895	1897
Acting	Republican	ME	1897
	Republican	MN	1897	1900
	Republican	IL	1901	1911
	Democratic	GA	1913	1914
	Democratic	MO	1914	1918
	Democratic	NE	1918	1919
	Republican	MA	1919	1924
	Republican	ID	1924	1933
	Democratic	NV	1933	1940
	Democratic	GA	1940	1941
	Democratic	TX	1941	1947
	Republican	MI	1947	1949
	Democratic	TX	1949	1953
	Republican	WI	1953	1955
	Democratic	GA	1955	1957
	Democratic	RI	1957	1959
	Democratic	AR	1959	1975
	Democratic	AL	1975	1979
	Democratic	ID	1979	1981
	Republican	IL	1981	1985
	Republican	IN	1985	1987
	Democratic	RI	1987	1995
	Republican	NC	1995	2001
	Democratic	DE	2001
	Republican	NC	2001
	Democratic	DE	2001	2003
	Republican	IN	2003	2007
	Democratic	DE	2007	2009
	Democratic	MA	2009	2013
	Democratic	NJ	2013	2015
	Republican	TN	2015	2019
	Republican	ID	2019	2021
	Democratic	NJ	2021	2023
	Democratic	MD	2023	2025
	Republican	ID	2025	present

Ranking members

Name	Party	State	Start	End
	Federalist	NY	1816	1817
	Democratic-Republican	GA	1817	1818
	Federalist	NY	1818	1819
	Democratic-Republican	VA	1819	1820
	Democratic-Republican	LA	1820	1822
	Democratic-Republican	NC	1822	1823
	Democratic-Republican	TN	1823	1824
	Democratic-Republican	NC	1824	1825
	Federalist	MA	1825	1826
	Democratic-Republican (1826–1827)	NH	1826	1828
	National Republican (1827–1828)
	Jacksonian	GA	1828	1829
	National Republican	NH	1829	1831
	Jacksonian	AL	1831	1832
	Jacksonian	NC	1832	1833
	Jacksonian	GA	1833	1834
	National Republican	ME	1834	1835
	National Republican	NC	1835	1836
	Democratic	GA	1834	1838
	Whig	KY	1838	1839
	Democratic	NC	1839	1840
	Democratic	SC	1840	1841
	Democratic	PA	1841	1845
	Democratic	NH	1845	1847
	Democratic	IN	1847	1848
	Whig	NC	1848	1849
	Whig	MA	1849
	Whig	NC	1849	1850
	Democratic	IL	1850	1851
	Democratic	WI	1851
	Whig	NC	1851	1853
	Whig	DE	1853	1855
	Democratic	LA	1855	1856
	Democratic	CA	1856	1857
	Democratic	MO	1857	1861
	Republican	NY	1861
	Republican	PA	1861
	Democratic	MO	1861	1862
	Unionist	KY	1862Template:Efn
	Democratic	MO	1862	1863
	Democratic	MD	1863	1864
	Republican	NY	1864	1865
	Republican	VT	1865
	Republican	OH	1865	1866
	Union Democratic	TN	1866	1867
	Republican	IN	1867	1868
	Republican	NH	1868	1869
	Republican	IN	1869	1871
	Republican	NH	1871	1873
	Republican	NJ	1873	1875
	Republican	NY	1875	1877
	Republican	OH	1877	1879
	Republican	ME	1879	1881
	Republican	ME	1881	1883
	Democratic	AL	1883	1885
	Republican	ME	1885	1887
	Democratic	AL	1887	1893
	Democratic	VA	1893	1895
	Republican	MA	1895	1897
	Democratic	AL	1897
	Democratic	IN	1897	1899
	Republican	OH	1899	1901
	Democratic	AL	1901	1903
	Republican	IN	1903	1905
	Republican	WI	1905	1907
	Democratic	GA	1907	1909
	Republican	MT	1909	1911
	Republican	OH	1911	1913
	Democratic	CA	1913	1915
	Republican	MA	1915	1917
	Democratic	TN	1917	1919
	Republican	CA	1919	1921
	Republican	IN	1921	1923
	Republican	NY	1923	1925
	Democratic	CA	1923	1929
	Republican	OH	1929	1931
	Democratic	CA	1931	1933
	Republican	ID	1933	1941
	Republican	CA	1941	1945
	Republican	KS	1945	1947
	Democratic	TX	1947	1949
	Republican	MI	1949	1951
	Republican	WI	1951	1953
	Democratic	GA	1953	1955
	Republican	WI	1955	1963
	Republican	IA	1963	1969
	Republican	SD	1969	1972
	Republican	VT	1972	1975
	Republican	NJ	1975	1979
	Republican	NY	1979	1981
	Democratic	RI	1981	1987
	Republican	IN	1987Template:Efn
	Republican	NC	1987	1995
	Democratic	DE	1997	2001
	Republican	NC	2001	2003
	Democratic	DE	2003	2007
	Republican	IN	2007	2013
	Republican	TN	2013	2015
	Democratic	NJ	2015
	Democratic	MD	2015	2018
	Democratic	NJ	2018	2021
	Republican	ID	2021	2025
	Democratic	NH	2025	present

Historical committee rosters

118th Congress

Majority

Minority

style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Ben Cardin, Maryland, Chair (from September 25, 2023) Bob Menendez, New Jersey, (Chair until September 22, 2023, member until August 20, 2024) Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Jeff Merkley, Oregon Cory Booker, New Jersey Brian Schatz, Hawaii Chris Van Hollen, Maryland Tammy Duckworth, Illinois George Helmy, New Jersey (September 10, 2024–December 8, 2024) Andy Kim, New Jersey (from December 10, 2024)

style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Jim Risch, Idaho, Ranking Member Marco Rubio, Florida Mitt Romney, Utah Pete Ricketts, Nebraska Rand Paul, Kentucky Todd Young, Indiana John Barrasso, Wyoming Ted Cruz, Texas Bill Hagerty, Tennessee Tim Scott, South Carolina

Subcommittees

Subcommittees	Chair	Ranking Member
Africa and Global Health Policy	Cory Booker (D-NJ)	Tim Scott (R-SC)
East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy	Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)	Mitt Romney (R-UT)
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)	Pete Ricketts (R-NE)
Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)	John Barrasso (R-WY)
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism	Chris Murphy (D-CT)	Todd Young (R-IN)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development	Ben Cardin (D-MD)	Bill Hagerty (R-TN)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	Tim Kaine (D-VA)	Marco Rubio (R-FL)

117th Congress

Majority	Minority
style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Chair Ben Cardin, Maryland Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Ed Markey, Massachusetts Jeff Merkley, Oregon Cory Booker, New Jersey Brian Schatz, Hawaii Chris Van Hollen, Maryland	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Jim Risch, Idaho, Ranking Member Marco Rubio, Florida Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Mitt Romney, Utah Rob Portman, Ohio Rand Paul, Kentucky Todd Young, Indiana Ted Cruz, Texas John Barrasso, Wyoming Mike Rounds, South Dakota Bill Hagerty, Tennessee

Subcommittees

Subcommittees	Chair	Ranking Member
Africa and Global Health Policy	Chris Van Hollen (D-MD)	Mike Rounds (R-SD)
East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy	Ed Markey (D-MA)	Mitt Romney (R-UT)
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)	Ron Johnson (R-WI)
Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	Chris Coons (D-DE)	Rob Portman (R-OH)
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism	Chris Murphy (D-CT)	Todd Young (R-IN)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development	Ben Cardin (D-MD)	Bill Hagerty (R-TN)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	Tim Kaine (D-VA)	Marco Rubio (R-FL)

116th Congress

Majority	Minority
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Jim Risch, Idaho, Chair Marco Rubio, Florida Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Cory Gardner, Colorado Todd Young, Indiana John Barrasso, Wyoming Rob Portman, Ohio Rand Paul, Kentucky Lindsey Graham, South Carolina Mitt Romney, Utah Ted Cruz, Texas David Perdue, Georgia	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Ranking Member Ben Cardin, Maryland Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Tom Udall, New Mexico Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Ed Markey, Massachusetts Jeff Merkley, Oregon Cory Booker, New Jersey

Subcommittees	Chair	Ranking Member
Africa and Global Health Policy	Lindsey Graham (R-SC)	Tim Kaine (D-VA)
East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy	Cory Gardner (R-CO)	Ed Markey (D-MA)
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Ron Johnson (R-WI)	Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism	Mitt Romney (R-UT)	Chris Murphy (D-CT)
Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	Todd Young (R-IN)	Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development	John Barrasso (R-WY)	Cory Booker (D-NJ)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	Marco Rubio (R-FL)	Ben Cardin (D-MD)

115th Congress

Majority	Minority
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Corker, Tennessee, Chair Jim Risch, Idaho Marco Rubio, Florida Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Jeff Flake, Arizona Cory Gardner, Colorado Todd Young, Indiana John Barrasso, Wyoming Johnny Isakson, Georgia Rob Portman, Ohio Rand Paul, Kentucky	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Menendez, New Jersey, Ranking Member Ben Cardin, Maryland Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Tom Udall, New Mexico Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Ed Markey, Massachusetts Jeff Merkley, Oregon Cory Booker, New Jersey

Subcommittees	Chair	Ranking Member
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism	Jim Risch (R-ID)	Tim Kaine (D-VA)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	Marco Rubio (R-FL)	Ben Cardin (D-MD) since February 6, 2018 Bob Menendez (D-NJ) until February 6, 2018
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Ron Johnson (R-WI)	Chris Murphy (D-CT)
Africa and Global Health Policy	Jeff Flake (R-AZ)	Cory Booker (D-NJ)
East Asia, The Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy	Cory Gardner (R-CO)	Ed Markey (D-MA)
Multilateral International Development, Multilateral Institutions, and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	Todd Young (R-IN)	Jeff Merkley (D-OR)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations, and Bilateral International Development	Johnny Isakson (R-GA)	Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH)

114th Congress

Majority	Minority
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Corker, Tennessee Chair Jim Risch, Idaho Marco Rubio, Florida Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Jeff Flake, Arizona Cory Gardner, Colorado David Perdue, Georgia Johnny Isakson, Georgia Rand Paul, Kentucky Rob Portman, Ohio John Barrasso, Wyoming	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Ben Cardin, Maryland, Ranking Member Barbara Boxer, California Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Tom Udall, New Mexico Bob Menendez, New Jersey Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Ed Markey, Massachusetts Jeff Merkley, Oregon

Sources: 2015 Congressional Record, Vol. 161, Page / S297 –297, 661–662

Subcommittee	Chair	Ranking Member
Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism	Jim Risch (R-Idaho)	Chris Murphy (D-Conn.)
Western Hemisphere, Transnational Crime, Civilian Security, Democracy, Human Rights and Global Women's Issues	Marco Rubio (R-Fla.)	Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
Europe and Regional Security Cooperation	Ron Johnson (R-Wisc.)	Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.)
Africa and Global Health Policy	Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.)	Ed Markey (D-Mass.)
State Department and USAID Management, International Operations and Bilateral International Development	Rand Paul (R-Ky.)	Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.)
East Asia, The Pacific and International Cybersecurity Policy	Cory Gardner (R-Colo.)	Ben Cardin (D-Md.)
International Development, Multilateral Institutions and International Economic, Energy and Environmental Policy	John Barrasso (R-Wyo.)	Tom Udall (D-N.M.)

113th Congress

Majority

Minority

style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | John Kerry, Massachusetts, Chair, until February 1, 2013 Bob Menendez, New Jersey Chair, from February 1, 2013 Barbara Boxer, California Ben Cardin, Maryland Jeanne Shaheen, New Hampshire Chris Coons, Delaware Bob Casey, Pennsylvania, until 2013 Dick Durbin, Illinois Tom Udall, New Mexico Chris Murphy, Connecticut Tim Kaine, Virginia Ed Markey, Massachusetts, from 2013

style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" valign=top | Bob Corker, Tennessee Ranking Member Jim Risch, Idaho Marco Rubio, Florida Ron Johnson, Wisconsin Jeff Flake, Arizona John McCain, Arizona John Barrasso, Wyoming Rand Paul, Kentucky

Sources: 2013 Congressional Record, Vol. 159, Page / S297 –297, 661–662

File:US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Inspecting Burnt Down Printing Press of Uthayan Newspaper.jpg

Officials from the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee inspecting burnt down printing press of Uthayan newspaper in Jaffna on December 7, 2013, while E. Saravanapavan, the managing director of the newspaper explaining something to him

Subcommittee	Chair	Ranking Member
International Operations and Organizations, Human Rights, Democracy and Global Women's Issues	Barbara Boxer (D-CA)	Rand Paul (R-KY)
East Asian and Pacific Affairs	Ben Cardin (D-MD)	Marco Rubio (R-FL)
African Affairs	Chris Coons (D-DE)	Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
Western Hemisphere and Global Narcotics Affairs	Tom Udall (D-NM)	John McCain (R-AZ)
European Affairs	Chris Murphy (D-CT)	Ron Johnson (R-WI)
Near Eastern and South and Central Asian Affairs	Tim Kaine (D-VA)	Jim Risch (R-ID)
International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs and International Environmental Protection, and Peace Corps	Tim Kaine (D-VA), until 2013 Ed Markey (D-MA), from 2013	John Barrasso (R-WY)

See also

• List of United States Senate committees

Further reading

• Carter, Ralph G. and James Scott, eds. Choosing to Lead : Understanding Congressional Foreign Policy Entrepreneurs (Duke University Press, 2009)
• Crabb, Cecil Van Meter, and Pat M. Holt. Invitation to struggle: Congress, the president, and foreign policy (CQ Press, 1992)
• Dahl, Robert A. Congress and Foreign Policy (1950)
• Farnsworth, David Nelson. The Senate Committee on Foreign Relations (University of Illinois Press, 1961), a topical survey of the committee's activity from 1947 to 1956.
• Frye, Alton. "'Gobble'uns' and foreign policy: a review," Journal of Conflict Resolution (1964) 8#3 pp: 314–321. Historiographical review of major books
• Gagnon, Frédérick. "Dynamic Men: Vandenberg, Fulbright, Helms and the Activity of the Chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee Since 1945." online (2013)
• Gazell, James A. "Arthur H. Vandenberg, Internationalism, and the United Nations." Political Science Quarterly (1973): 375–394. in JSTOR
• Gould, Lewis. The Most Exclusive Club : A History of the Modern United States Senate (2006)
• Hewes, James E. Jr. "Henry Cabot Lodge and the League of Nations". Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society (1970) 114#4 pp: 245–255.
• Hitchens, Harold L., "Influences of the Congressional Decision to Pass the Marshall Plan" Western Political Science Quarterly (1968) 21#1 pp: 51–68. in JSTOR
• Jewell, Malcolm E. Senatorial Politics and Foreign Policy (U. of Kentucky Press, 1962)
• Kaplan, Lawrence S. The Conversion of Senator Arthur H. Vandenberg: From Isolation to International Engagement (University Press of Kentucky, 2015)
• Link, William A. Righteous Warrior: Jesse Helms and the Rise of Modern Conservatism (2008)
• McCormick, James M. "Decision making in the foreign affairs and foreign relations committees." in Randall B. Ripley and James M. Lindsay, eds.. Congress resurgent: foreign and defense policy on Capitol Hill (University of Michigan press, 1993) pp: 115–153
• Maguire, Lori. "The US Congress and the politics of Afghanistan: an analysis of the Senate Foreign Relations and Armed Services Committees during George W Bush's second term." Cambridge Review of International Affairs (2013) 26#2 pp: 430–452.
• Robinson, James A. Congress and Foreign Policy-Making (1962), statistical study of roll calls emphasizing the importance of the committee
• Spanier, John, and Joseph Nogee, eds. Congress, the Presidency and American Foreign Policy (Elsevier, 2013)
• Warburg, Gerald Felix. Conflict and consensus: The struggle between Congress and the president over foreign policymaking (HarperCollins Publishers, 1989)
• Woods, Randall Bennett. Fulbright : A Biography (Cambridge University Press, 1995)
• Young, Roland. Congressional Politics in the Second World War (1958), pp 168–96

Primary sources

• Vandenberg, Arthur Hendrick, and Joe Alex Morris, eds. The private papers of Senator Vandenberg. (1952)

External links

• U.S. Senate Committee of Foreign Relations Official Website (Archive)
• Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Legislation activity and reports, Congress.gov.
• U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) Page for the Committee of Foreign Relations