Congress is coming back: McCain set to return, Menendez sets for trial

[riversedge]

Source: CNN



Story highlights

Sen. John McCain will return to the Senate following cancer treatment
Sen. Robert Menendez is expected to miss time due to his criminal trial

Washington (CNN)When Congress reconvenes Tuesday following the August recess, one senator struggling with a life-threatening illness will return to Capitol Hill while another facing corruption charges will be forced to miss much of the fall session.

Every member's availability for key votes could end up being consequential as the bitterly divided chamber is set to tackle a slew of high-profile issues from voting on emergency funding for Hurricane Harvey, raising the debt ceiling, passing a budget and enacting tax reform.
.......................

If found guilty, Menendez's situation presents Senate Democrats with the awkward question of whether he should be forced to resign, a situation that poses a political problem for their caucus.

Any vacancy would be filled by the Republican Gov. Chris Christie and give Senate Republicans another vote in already bitterly divided chamber.

Read more: http://edition.cnn.com/2017/09/04/politics/john-mccain-bob-menendez-senate-return/index.html?iid=ob_lockedrail_topeditorial

---

Link to tweet

Link to tweet

[Bradical79]

1. Hope he doesn't resign without being convicted

Or is forced out. Don't want to hand the GOP another seat until we have to.

[videohead5]

2. NJ Will Have a New Democratic

Governor come November 7.hopefully the trial will take a long time.

[crazycatlady]

5. He won't be sworn in until January

And if Christie gets his hands on this senate seat, it will be filled with a Republican. NJ already saw his playing games with Frank Lautenberg's seat after his death.

[videohead5]

6. If Christie

Appoints someone does the new Governor get to appoint someone else after he is sworn in?

[crazycatlady]

7. Not sure how that works

Also there was talk of changing the law after the Lautenberg fiasco in 2013 to make sure that the appointee is the same party as the outgoing senator. I'm not sure whether that ever passed as law or not.

[JI7]

9. I don't think so.

[kimbutgar]

3. Menendez should not resign if found guilty until after the election of the new governor.

And after he had exhausted his appeals.

Compared to twitlers crimes this guy did nothing as bad.

[orleans]

4. i either forgot about this or i'm a bit out of touch

anyway,
here's a link on the trial
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-new-jersey-menendez/new-jersey-senator-menendez-fails-to-win-breaks-in-corruption-trial-idUSKCN1BC4G7

[Scarsdale]

8. Every issue will be

put onto the back burner, until the REAL work is done. Electing new committee members for the new Benghazi, Benghazi Benghazi hearings. No doubt there are other gop members who will not mind making theselves look like total asses, like Issa, Gowdy and the creep who took a job at Faux when his mistress was revealed. Oh, yeah Chaffetz.

[DeminPennswoods]

10. Didn't the Supreme Court essentially throw

these kinds of corruption cases out when it overturned Bob McConnell's conviction? I guess I'll never really be convinced that there's usually a quid pro quo between a constituent making a donation and getting his/her representative to act on some request.

I can see if, say, an out-of-state or unrelated entity like the Koch's makes donations and asks for favors in return, but I don't see that applying to constituents.