How Will Sen. Johnson Vote?

How will Sen. Tim Johnson (D-SD) vote?

I’m not asking if he’ll vote yea or nay on a particular topic — rather, how will he physically vote on anything?

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First, there is good news on the recovery of Sen. Tim Johnson, who has been upgraded from critical to fair after emergency surgery in December for bleeding in his brain.

Meanwhile, the newly empowered Democratic Congress is plowing ahead with business as usual. But Pajamas Media wonders how Sen. Johnson will be able to fulfill his obligations as a Senator in his current condition:

Exactly how Senator Johnson will participate and vote in the Senate in the coming weeks and months is unclear. One South Dakota media outlet assured constituents;”Staff Representing Johnson In His Absence” but details are few. Johnson’s Senate web page is understandably reticent. Johnson represents the 51-49 Democratic majority in the Senate. His office has said that his recovery is expected to take several months.

Under Senate Rule 12, a Senator must be present on the Senate floor to vote: “When the yeas and nays are ordered, the names of Senators shall be called alphabetically; and each Senator shall, without debate, declare his assent or dissent to the question, unless excused by the Senate.

In the meantime, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced that Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) will chair the Senate Ethics Committee during Senator Tim Johnson’s recovery from surgery.

Which is good. If Sen. Johnson cannot physically sit and vote on a committee, than someone else should be appointed in his stead.

But Sen. Johnson was also assigned to the Interior Appropriations Subcommittee and the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Subcommittee. Shouldn’t someone else sit for Sen. Johnson on this committee too? Don’t his constituents and those with business before this committee deserve as much as full representation?

I hope the Senator has a full and speedy recovery. But how long do we “keep his seat warm” while he recovers (remember, at this point, he hasn’t spoken nor communicated in nearly a month)? What if it’s another 3-4 months (as doctors predict) before he can communicate? What if it’s a year?