The Democrats’ fragile hold on the Senate majority has become vividly apparent with the sudden illness of of New Mexico Sen. Ben Ray Luján
More pressing, though, is the upcoming Supreme Court confirmation battle to replace retiring Justice Stephen Breyer. Democrats have been eager to shift to the high court fight, believing it will galvanize voters at a time when Biden's broader legislative agenda, including his sweeping Build Back Better Act and voting legislation, have collapsed.
As it stands, Biden's agenda has fallen apart on Capitol Hill, taken down by the one-two punch of Republican opposition and two Democrats, Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who have joined Republicans to halt the president's priorities. “We always knew a 50/50 Senate was going to require patience as well as cooperation and we hope he’s back soon,” said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.
Luján's condition appears serious, but also improving. He is expected to be out for at least a month, according to a Democrat familiar with the situation who discussed it on condition of anonymity. More recently, Democrats faced a health scare last year when Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., was diagnosed with cancer. She underwent radiation therapy and is cancer-free.
Most Senate Democrats hadn’t spoken directly to Luján or his office as of Wednesday. Even his New Mexico colleague, Democratic Sen. Martin Heinrich, shut down reporters inquiring about Lujan’s health and wellbeing, calling the questions “unbelievable.” But his absence was felt throughout the Senate, with both Republicans and Democratic lawmakers hailing his bipartisan work at the Commerce hearing Wednesday morning, according to committee chairwoman Maria Cantwell.
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