Steny Hoyer has gotten a lot of bad (virtual) ink on Daily Kos lately, what with his support of the bankruptcy bill and his failure to perform the duties of the Whip (whipping the party into conformity behind the leader's position), and I don't oppose these complaints. What I want to know is: why is he still the Whip? How does one get this job, and can it be taken away from him? What are the rules for this?