Talk:Thomas M. Rees

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Biography: Politics and Government

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Tenure

Only true "Congress nerds" are aware of this, but the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (commonly known as the Bioguide) has gone downhill over the years. Among their recent sins are dropping full names of members and only using the names (including nicknames) by which they're publicly known; also, their final resting places usually are not included in their biographical sketches any longer.

The Bioguide, in its print editions, had a summary section on all the Congresses from the beginning, which doesn't seem to be available online. The footnotes in this section used to indicate when a member who won a special election was sworn in, using the phrase "took his seat." That phrase was later changed, misleadingly, to "became a member of the House."

Despite the Bioguide's official status, this is flatly incorrect. That phrase contradicts the text of Rep. Rees's biographical sketch--in the SAME publication--which makes clear that he became a member of the House the day he won his special election, December 15, 1965. He was sworn in on January 10, 1966, and thus began drawing his salary and was able to carry out the duties of the office, but his seniority began the day of the election. Accordingly, I have edited the Infobox.

His State Senate service overlaps with his U.S. House seniority, as his Senate resignation letter is dated for the day before he was sworn into the House, but this is not a problem as he was not required to resign his Senate seat until just before taking the congressional oath. The footnote indicating the resignation letter should adequately explain the overlap. In addition, the California Blue Book indicates that Rees's Senate seat was vacant throughout the 1966 session. https://bioguide.congress.gov/search/bio/R000134 Rontrigger (talk) 01:57, 28 April 2024 (UTC)[reply]