Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell’s ongoing absence from the Capitol is threatening to derail Senate Republicans’ hopes of advancing a long-awaited farm bill before the August recess.
Senate Agriculture Chair John Boozman (R-Ark.) has promised a committee markup within the four weeks before lawmakers leave Washington, but attendance concerns and a narrow window to advance legislation are raising doubts about that timeline.
McConnell’s weekslong hospitalization presents a unique challenge for Boozman’s plans: Republicans won’t have enough votes without McConnell to advance the legislation out of committee along party lines, and Democrats have vowed to oppose the bill because it does not include their top policy demands.
“We’re concerned about Sen. McConnell, and so hopefully that will be such that he can participate in the markup,” Boozman said Tuesday, adding that he was still “working on” scheduling the committee’s markup.
