Editing Jesse Helms (section)

===Republicans take the Senate===
In the [[United States Senate election, 1980|1980 Senate election]], the Republicans unexpectedly won a majority,<ref name="Democrats aim to regain">{{cite news |first=Nicolas |last=Ashford |title=Democrats aim to regain lost ground |work=[[The Times]] |page=10 |date=February 10, 1984 }}</ref> their first in twenty-six years, including [[John Porter East]], a social conservative and a Helms protégé soon dubbed "Helms on Wheels",<ref>{{cite news |first=Lynn |last=Rosellini |title=North Carolina Republican, Mark II |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=16 |date=February 16, 1982 }}</ref> winning the other North Carolina seat. [[Howard Baker]] was set to become [[United States Senate Majority Leader|Majority Leader]], but conservatives, angered by Baker's support for the Panama treaty, [[SALT II]], and the Equal Rights Amendment, had sought to replace him with Helms until Reagan gave Baker his backing.<ref name="Busy programme for President">{{cite news |first=Patrick |last=Brogan |title=Busy programme for President and 'lame duck' Congress |work=[[The Times]] |page=5 |date=November 8, 1980 }}</ref> Although, it was thought they'd put Helms in charge of the Foreign Relations Committee instead of the liberal [[Charles H. Percy]],<ref name="Busy programme for President" /> he instead became chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry|Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee]] in the new Congress.

The first six months of 1981 were consumed by numerous Foreign Relations Committee confirmation hearings, which were held up by Helms, who believed many of the appointees too liberal or too tainted by association with Kissinger,<ref>{{cite news |title=Critics delay Reagan nominations |work=[[The Times]] |page=5 |date=April 24, 1981 }}</ref><ref name="White House unhappy at confirmation delays">{{cite news |first=David |last=Cross |title=Senate snub forces Reagan man to withdraw |work=[[The Times]] |page=7 |date=April 18, 1981 }}</ref> and not dedicated enough to his definition of the "Reagan program": support for South Africa, Taiwan, and Latin American right-wing regimes (as opposed to Black Africa and "Red" China).<ref>{{cite news |first=Juan |last=de Onis |title=3 Appointees, Opposed by Helms, Confirmed by Senate Committee |work=[[The New York Times]] |page=10 |date=April 29, 1981 }}</ref> These nominations included [[Alexander Haig]],<ref name="Reagan appointments bring trouble">{{cite news |first=Patrick |last=Brogan |title=Reagan appointments bring trouble on far right |work=[[The Times]] |page=8 |date=February 13, 1981 }}</ref> [[Chester Crocker]],<ref name="White House unhappy at confirmation delays" /> [[John J. Louis Jr.]], and [[Lawrence Eagleburger]],<ref name="Reagan team prepares">{{cite news |first=Patrick |last=Brogan |title=Reagan team prepares economic package to cut public spending |work=[[The Times]] |page=4 |date=January 24, 1982 }}</ref> all of whom were confirmed regardless,<ref>{{cite news |first=David |last=Cross |title=Stalling by Helms is ignored |work=[[The Times]] |page=8 |date=April 30, 1981 }}</ref> while all of Helms's candidates were rejected.<ref name="Reagan appointments bring trouble" /><ref>{{cite news |first=David |last=Cross |title=Senate snub forces Reagan man to withdraw |work=[[The Times]] |page=1 |date=June 6, 1981 }}</ref> Helms also, unsuccessfully, opposed the nominations of [[Caspar Weinberger]], [[Donald Regan]],<ref name="Reagan appointments bring trouble" /> and [[Frank Carlucci]].<ref name="Reagan team prepares" /> However, he did score a notable coup two years later when he led a small group of conservatives to block the nomination of [[Robert T. Grey]] for nine months,<ref>{{cite news |first=Nicholas |last=Ashford |title=US diehards endanger arms talks |work=[[The Times]] |page=6 |date=January 6, 1983 }}</ref> thus causing the firing of [[Eugene V. Rostow]].<ref>{{cite news |first=Mohsin |last=Ali |title=Why Rostow lost his job |work=[[The Times]] |page=6 |date=January 14, 1983 }}</ref>