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Byrd's use of the term "nigger" created immediate controversy.

Byrd's use of the term "nigger" created immediate controversy.

On November 7, 2006, Byrd was elected to an unprecedented ninth consecutive term in the Senate. He became the longest-serving senator in American history on [[June 12]], [[2006]], surpassing [[Strom Thurmond]] of [[South Carolina]] with 17,327 days of service.<ref>[http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/053106/news2.html The Hill]</ref> Previously, he already held the record for the longest unbroken tenure in the Senate (Thurmond served 48 years in total, but vacated the office between April and November of 1956). Counting his tenure as a West Virginia state legislator from 1947 to 1953, Byrd has served as an elected official for almost 60 years and has never lost an election. Byrd has cast a total of 17,745 votes as of [[September 13]], [[2006]] — the most of any senator in history. Upon the death of Senator [[George Smathers]] of Florida on [[January 20]], [[2007]] — Byrd became the last living United States Senator from the 1950s.<ref>[http://senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/three_column_table/10000_or_more_votes.htm U.S. Senate]</ref> This means that not only has Byrd outlived every other Senator who had seniority over him, but he is the only person to ever have remained in the Senate the entire time while doing it. He is on pace to pass [[Carl Hayden]] of [[Arizona]] as the longest-serving member of Congress (House and Senate tenure combined) in American history sometime in early [[2010]]. Byrd is the last remaining Senator to have voted on a statehood bill and has served longer in the Senate than eight of his colleagues have been alive (those being [[Bob Casey, Jr.]], [[Amy Klobuchar]], [[Blanche Lincoln]], [[John Thune]], [[David Vitter]], [[Barack Obama]], [[Mark Pryor]], and [[John E. Sununu]]).

On November 7, 2006, Byrd was elected to an unprecedented ninth consecutive term in the Senate. He became the longest-serving senator in American history on [[June 12]], [[2006]], surpassing [[Strom Thurmond]] of [[South Carolina]] with 17,327 days of service.<ref>[http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/053106/news2.html The Hill]</ref> Previously, he already held the record for the longest unbroken tenure in the Senate (Thurmond served 48 years in total, but vacated the office between April and November of 1956). Counting his tenure as a West Virginia state legislator from 1947 to 1953, Byrd has served as an elected official for almost 60 years and has never lost an election. Byrd has cast a total of 17,745 votes as of [[September 13]], [[2006]] — the most of any senator in history. Upon the death of Senator [[George Smathers]] of Florida on January 20, 2007 — Byrd became the last living United States Senator from the 1950s.<ref>[http://senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/three_column_table/10000_or_more_votes.htm U.S. Senate]</ref> This means that not only has Byrd outlived every other Senator who had seniority over him, but he is the only person to ever have remained in the Senate the entire time while doing it. He is on pace to pass [[Carl Hayden]] of [[Arizona]] as the longest-serving member of Congress (House and Senate tenure combined) in American history sometime in early [[2010]]. Byrd is the last remaining Senator to have voted on a statehood bill and has served longer in the Senate than eight of his colleagues have been alive (those being [[Bob Casey, Jr.]], [[Amy Klobuchar]], [[Blanche Lincoln]], [[John Thune]], [[David Vitter]], [[Barack Obama]], [[Mark Pryor]], and [[John E. Sununu]]).

Byrd is currently the chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Appropriations]]. Byrd was first appointed to the committee by then-Majority Leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] when he first entered the Senate in 1959. Since [[1989]], he has been the committee's top Democrat and has chaired the committee when the Democrats have control of the Senate. Byrd is also a member of the [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Committee on Armed Services]], the [[United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration|Committee on Rules and Administration]] and the [[United States Senate Committee on the Budget|Committee on the Budget]].

Byrd is currently the chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Appropriations]]. Byrd was first appointed to the committee by then-Majority Leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] when he first entered the Senate in 1959. Since [[1989]], he has been the committee's top Democrat and has chaired the committee when the Democrats have control of the Senate. Byrd is also a member of the [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Committee on Armed Services]], the [[United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration|Committee on Rules and Administration]] and the [[United States Senate Committee on the Budget|Committee on the Budget]].