Johnson ‘recovering without complication’

December 14, 2006

The latest report on Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) sounds relatively encouraging.

Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) underwent emergency surgery overnight to repair bleeding inside his brain and was “recovering without complication” this morning, according to the U.S. Capitol physician.

Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, who has spent considerable time visiting with Johnson and his family, said the senator “looked very, very good.”

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN’s chief medical correspondent, noted that Johnson should expect a “long road” to recovery, which could take “months at a minimum.”

Given the seriousness of the ailment, of course, the key word is, of course, “recovery.”

Just a quick word about the politics of all of this. I hope that it’s obvious that Johnson’s well-being is of the utmost significance, and I’m sure everyone is extends their best wishes to the senator and his family. I suppose at a certain level, that could be the end of it, and political implications would be irrelevant, but that’s just not the case. He’s an important political figure in an important political time, and it’s only natural that observers consider the political consequences associated with his illness. That’s not callous or placing partisanship above people, that’s just a recognition of the political environment in which we operate.

Considering “what happens next” seems to me to be a perfectly normal reaction to the circumstances.

I think that any time a Democratic rep or senator falls ill a screen should be done for Polonium.

Bush and Pooty-poot being such good friends and all…

  • For those who don’t know what AVM is, this is the medical problem Nathaniel dealt with on “Six Feet Under.” Since they dealt with that very accurately on the show, if you watched it (or are watching the re-broadcast on Bravo now), you pretty much know what all this is about.

    The good news is, it is treatable and can leave the senator with a good quality of life. The big question is what level of damage happened to the brain in the event, which may not be apparent for a while, and that will impact his political future.

    God speed, Senator Johnson – your country needs you!

  • Fox & Friends are having wet dreams about Cheney casting tie-breaking votes. Not do fast, Fox. Americans prefer an ‘incapacitated’ Sen Johnson over a fully awake Cheney ANY DAY .

  • It’s sad that my first reaction to hearing of Senator Johnson’s illness was the same as Tom Ames’.

    As CB says, this is still a critical time and not having the Senator present during the organization of the Senate in January is a serious blow. We have a freaking one vote margin and none of our people can be absent during any of it.

    I certainly hope for his sake that the ‘event’ was not too damaging (none of all being our pray, of course) and that he can return to represent his state for years to come.

  • Hear, hear. May he recover to the fullest, and speedily, and continue to represent the great state of South Dakota.

    But if I were Harry Reid, I would STILL be trying to get Susan Collins to switch! After all, a 52-48 majority is less precarious than a 51-49!

  • One other thought is this- Say the dude kicks, and the Pukes take the Senate- Wouldn’t that just unleash the Dems in the House to be just as bad-ass as they want to be? You know, less restrained than they would be if they have both houses? Maybe it would be a blessing.

  • As of 12:54pm the WaPo is reporting,

    Sen. Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.), who is set to become Senate majority leader when the new Congress convenes in January, told reporters later that Johnson “really looks good” and that nothing has changed as far as Democratic control of the new Senate is concerned.

    In a brief news conference at the Capitol, Reid said he had spent much of last night with Johnson at the hospital and was “very impressed” with his care.

    “We’re all praying for a full recovery,” he said. “We’re confident that will be the case.” However, he declined to say whether Johnson was conscious during his visit or provide any other details of his medical condition.

    “I saw him; he looked great,” Reid said. “To me, he looked very good.”

    Asked whether Johnson would be able to serve in the Senate, Reid said, “There isn’t a thing that’s changed. The Republicans selected their committees yesterday. We’ve completed ours.” He said he has a “very busy schedule today going ahead and getting ready for the next year.” Reid also said he has kept Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), the incoming Republican leader in the Senate, “totally advised of everything that’s going on.”

  • Given that the Senator was in his office when the event occurred, and he was gotten to hospital and surgery very quickly, I’d say his chances for recovery are good.

  • Haik, You realize that you said said it would be a blessing if the “dude” dies. I don’t think you meant it, but geez, be careful.

    If this were Cheney people would be talking about the fallout, times ten. I don’t think it’s disrespectful to talk about the fallout, but I still feel guilty about it. This whole thing has really caught a lot of people off guard and made us realize how vulnerable we really are. We have all these hopes and dreams only to have them possibly snatched from us because of one man’s health, fricken scary. Let’s be honest, that one mans or any other Democratic Senator’s physical well being is pretty damn important at this stage of the game.

    I am glad the man is doing well and I am also glad the Democratic Senator is doing well.

  • All the more reason why Reid should be trying like hell to get Collins (or one of the other ‘Publican moderates, though I think Collins is the most likely) to switch or go Independent! Gotta bolster that majority!

  • I agree with The Caped Composer (#5). While it’s very good news that Senator Johnson will recover, this was just too close a call. Who knows … with the Bush Crime Family, it may have even given some of those sleazebags ideas. Efforts to recruit Senators like Susan Collins and Independent Bernie Sanders to cast their lot with the Democrats should be pursued with vigor. Build a truly comfortable majority prior to the full frolic of 2008.

  • Bernie Sanders will already caucus with the Democrats, so that wouldn’t be a numerical gain for us. Collins, on the other hand, would add to our numbers. Hey! We should all start calling Reid’s office and exhorting him to get Collins to switch! Whaddya say?

  • Tim Johnson wasn’t yet out of surgery when the toads of the MSM where already chortling over the “implications for the Senate” as the dickheads phrased it. The trouble is they forgot one thing: the election of 2006 was a complete repudiation of the Republic party. The fools were shown the door at all levels of government in this nation – local, state, and federal. If the governor of South Dakota thinks he’s going to throw a reichwing monkey wrench into the situation, he’s playing with his personal safety as well as that of his family. And I wouldn’t want to be a Senator from a state with a Democrat for governor, either.

  • Caped Composer,

    Why Susan Collins and not Olympia Snowe? Collins has been pulling too many McCains/Specters recently, for my taste. Snowe at least refused to vote on torture, even if she didn’t vote against it. Though, of course, getting them *both* to switch would really get the Repubs goat 🙂

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