Daniel Inouye is the senior Senator from Hawaii. He will serve as the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee following the departure of Robert Byrd due to health issues.CBS News: Reid Reshuffles Committee Heads (December 15, 2008)

Inouye enlisted in the Army in 1943. After losing his arm in the war, he studied political science in college and later earned his Juris Doctor from George Washington University Law School.

Inouye has represented Hawaii in Congress since it became a state in 1959. After a stint in the House of Representatives, he was elected Senator. This would be a position in which he remained for over four decades. He is a member of six committees:

1. Appropriations
2. Commerce, Science, and Transportation
3. Indian Affairs
4. Rules and Administration
5. Joint Committee on Printing
6. Senate Democratic Steering and Coordination