The health of U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., is the topic of a current article in a prominent
The Politico ran an article today discussing the fact that the average age of members of the U.S. Senate is older than it has ever been, and addressing concerns that, “for many senators, advanced age is starting to show, raising questions about their ability to govern.”
Though the article focuses on several aging senators, it devotes significant time to Domenici. Rumors have spread for months that Domenici might not seek another term because of poor health, but the senator insists he will run for re-election in 2008.
The article points out that, until he retired last month, former Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn. and a heart surgeon, was being consulted for medical advice by two dozen colleagues, including Domenici, who once flew on Frist’s private jet for treatment at the Frist Clinic in Nashville.
According to the article, Domenici “suffers from a variety of ailments” and “leaned heavily on Frist for medical advice.” It states that Domenici has undergone two surgeries for a nerve problem, has bursitis in his hips and suffers from spinal stenosis, a “narrowing of the spinal cord that can be painful.”
“He has hearing aids in both ears, forcing him to lean in very close to someone when having a conversation, and he moves slowly and deliberately when taking the floor for votes, stopping often to lean against a wall or desk for rest or to steady himself,” the article states. “He can appear disheveled at times. Domenici wore a suit with a large tear in the coat one day recently, and in early December, after being seen ambling through the halls of the Hart Senate Office Building in a pair of hunting pants that resembled pajamas, Domenici aides scrambled to quash a rumor that the lawmaker was not as mentally acute as he had been.”
Pressure on several aging Republican senators to continue serving is enormous, since the party just lost the majority and has to defend a number of Senate seats next year.
“Domenici’s advisers and Republican strategists portray him as hale and hearty, and suggest any buzz that Domenici’s problems will force him to step down is nothing more than a Democratic plot to drive him from office,” the article states. It then quotes Domenici spokesman Matt Letourneau as saying the senator is “in better health than he was three years ago,” and pointing out that, back then, Domenici had to use a motorized cart to get around.