Cantwell: No Sohn Discharge Vote This Week Despite Cramer Absence

Senate Democratic leaders have abandoned talk of seeking a vote this week to discharge FCC nominee Gigi Sohn from the Commerce Committee’s jurisdiction, panel Chair Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told us Thursday night. Democratic leaders had earlier been eyeing whether they could pursue a discharge vote this week because all 50 Democratic caucus members were available and a handful of Republicans were absent from the chamber.

Sen. Ken Cramer of North Dakota was the only Republican still absent as of Thursday. He’s recovering at home following a serious injury to his right hand but expects to return to Capitol Hill after a two-week recess set to end July 11. His absence and that of Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania allowed the chamber to move earlier in the week on several of President Joe Biden’s nominees who have faced strong GOP headwinds, including a 50-48 Wednesday vote to confirm Mary Boyle to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Senate Democratic leaders decided against a vote on Sohn after further evaluating Republican “attendance” and because “they got stuck” in the floor process for considering the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act as an amendment to shell bill S-2938, Cantwell said: “We’re just going to make guns the priority until we get off” for the recess. Two of three Democratic senators who have been undecided on Sohn -- Mark Kelly of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia -- indicated Thursday they still hadn’t made up their minds.