Up to a dozen members of Congress reportedly have mental faculties so diminished they can no longer do their jobs — with some even showing up drunk or stoned to cast votes.
“There’s no question that somewhere between six and a dozen of my colleagues are at a point where they’re … I think they don’t have the faculties to do their job,” Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn) told Politico, which spoke to 25 members of the House and Senate who spilled the tea on their unnamed colleagues.
A Republican colleague concurred, with an important addendum.
“I have a difficult time sometimes telling between the deterioration of members and a handful who are just not very smart,” the unnamed lawmaker said.
After President Biden’s 2024 presidential campaign spectacular collapse due to his age-related cognitive issues, the issue of elected officials hanging on past their expiration date has come sharply into focus — with neither chamber of Congress being spared.
Former California Sen. Dianne Feinstein held office despite being so diminished she was forced to cede power of attorney to her daughter. Texas Rep. Kay Granger — the powerful former chair of the House Appropriations Committee — was found in an assisted living facility last year after being AWOL for six months.
“The United States Congress is the world’s most prestigious senior center,” Rep. Ritchie Torres, 36, (D-NY) quipped to The Post.
Some lawmakers claimed late night votes in the House are rarely cast entirely sober.
“Every time we do an 11 p.m. vote, a minority of the chamber has a zero blood alcohol content. Now, that’s different than voting drunk. I don’t think I’ve ever seen somebody demonstrably drunk on the floor,” Himes noted.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) claimed to have seen one GOPer who “show[ed] up drunk” several times — and that “there were one or two Dems I thought might be high on something, but not drunk.”
Added Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY): “I would say DC is more like ‘Veep.’ We’ve had a couple of ‘Veep’ moments in my office.”
Other members cried poverty about their $174,000 salary — something which has not been adjusted for inflation in 15 years.
“I have people who land in the airport here and call me and ask, can I send my car for them. I mean, my first term up here I didn’t even own a car,” said South Carolina Rep. James Clyburn — one of the most powerful Democrats in the chamber.
Added Himes: “Everybody thinks that we fly around on Air Force One and dine at the French embassy every night. But the reality is, I’m eating burritos and McDonald’s more often than I’m dining in any embassies.”
