The announcement from earlier today that Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J., has stomach cancer is a sad one. From his office:
“We expect a full and complete recovery for Senator Lautenberg. The senator will be treated with chemotherapy administered approximately every three weeks. We anticipate that he will receive between six and eight treatments, and in between treatments, the senator is expected to be back at work in the Senate.”
Wishing him a speedy recovery, it is also worth noting that his absence from any major votes in the near future could be difficult for Democrats. The 60-vote bar on most Senate legislation does not adjust with the number of senators who are actually present to vote. Moreover, because Democrats failed to pass a Massachusetts-style succession law in their lame-duck session, Lautenberg’s resignation would probably turn his seat over to a Republican.
Ailing Senators often find a way to attend critical votes — in one infamous 2002 incident, Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., was reportedly wheeled into the Capitol on a gurney in case his vote was needed — but this presents at least a minor complication. Democrats had already lost their supermajority in the Senate, but this could, in some circumstances, further diminish their chances of breaking filibusters with a bit of Republican help.
Lautenberg was already a veteran of the Senate and a retiree in 2002, Democrats drafted him to run for his current seat after Sen. Bob Torricelli, D-N.J., bowed out of his race under a cloud of corruption charges.
