Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) will resign effective April 1, citing his deteriorating health.
According to Mississippi law, an interim gubernatorial appointment will be made until a special election is held.
Cochran Expected to Resign Next Year
Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS), chairman of the powerful Appropriations Committee, “hasn’t presided over a hearing since early September. The Mississippi Republican has not given a speech on the Senate floor all year, and he’s introduced only two bills during that time, both of them minor,” Politico reports.
“The 80-year-old’s feeble performance has fueled expectations — among senators and aides who’ve witnessed his physical and mental decline firsthand — that Cochran will step down from the Appropriations chairmanship early next year, or resign from the Senate altogether.”
Said one GOP senator: “The understanding is that he will leave after Jan. 1, That’s what most of us believe will happen.”
Cochran Says He’s Not Retiring
Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) “insists that he is not retiring from Congress, despite widespread speculation about the veteran lawmaker’s health and political future,” Politico reports.
“The 79-year-old Cochran appeared frail and at times disoriented during a brief hallway interview on Wednesday. He was unable to answer whether he would remain chairman of the Appropriations Committee, and at one point, needed a staffer to remind him where the Senate chamber is located.”
Cochran Still Not Back at Work
Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) “will not return to Washington on Monday as planned due to continued health problems — denying Senate Republicans a reliable vote as they take up a must-pass budget later this week,” Politico reports.
A statement from his office said that he will “return to the Senate when his health permits.”
USA Today: “Cochran’s failure to return to work Monday has prompted numerous national news reports saying GOP leaders are worried about an extended absence of a key member of the budget-setting process and a Republican vote they can’t afford to lose on pending measures.”
Concerns Mount Over Thad Cochran’s Health
Politico: “Republicans are worried about Thad Cochran. The Mississippi senator has been recovering the past several weeks from a urological procedure. And concern is growing on and off Capitol Hill over whether the 79-year-old lawmaker will return to work on Monday when the Senate comes back from recess — not to mention how long he’ll be able to continue leading a high-profile committee or even remain in the Senate. Multiple sources close to the senator said his staff and allies have received limited information from his family about his health status, further fueling questions about his future.”
“Cochran’s office maintains that the Mississippi Republican will return next week as planned, and Senate Republican aides said they expect him back as well. But several K Street sources and Cochran allies said he’s unlikely to be back next week. Multiple sources said there’s increasing worry his absence could stretch through the end of the year.”
Blogger Who Taped Senator’s Wife Sentenced
“A Mississippi man who last week pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy for videotaping the ailing wife of Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) has been sentenced to five years in prison, though he will be released after two-and-a-half years,” Politico reports.
Cochran Marries Longtime Staffer
Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) married his longtime aide Kay Webber in a private family ceremony on Saturday, the Jackson Clarion Ledger reports.
“Cochran’s relationship with Webber became the topic of much speculation and intrigue during last year’s Republican U.S. Senate primary. Supporters of challenger Chris McDaniel accused Cochran of carrying on an affair with Webber. Cochran’s office denied any kind of affair.”
Senate Staffer Admits Drugs-for-Sex Scheme
A staffer for Sen. Thad Cochran (R-MS) imported drugs from China in a plan to exchange them for sexual favors, the Washington City Paper reports.
“Fred W. Pagan… first came on law enforcement’s radar on April 9, when customs agents found a Chinese package addressed to him in Ohio that held more than a kilo of GBL, a controlled drug akin to ‘date rape drug’ GHB. After the search, Pagan allegedly told investigators that he had received three other GBL packages. According to the court filing, Pagan said that he handed out the GBL and meth ‘in exchange for sexual favors.'”
