 In 1962, Clark was re-elected to a second term after narrowly defeating Congressman James E. Van Zandt by a 51%-49% margin.Clark was appointed to the Democratic Steering Committee in 1963, but conservative Southern Democrats thwarted his efforts to appoint more liberal Senators to committees.He was a critic of the Senate itself, which he called a "self-perpetuating oligarchy" in a 1963 address on the Senate floor.