The disappearance of Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ) took the political world by storm over the last few months. The refusal to provide any details into the unexplained medical issue created a storm of speculation. Now we know what kept him away from the job for more than 100 days: Depression.

In no way, shape, or form do I mean to diminish the severity of mental health — as someone diagnosed with major depressive disorder — but there is a serious problem when a congressman can miss all that time with no repercussions, yet his constituents would have been fired or at least not been paid for doing the same thing. He’s supposed to be held to a higher standard in Congress, not a lower one.