With one senator absent, Biden and Democrats' agenda at risk

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Democrats’ fragile hold on the Senate majority became even more tenuous Wednesday with the sudden illness of New Mexico Sen. Ben Ray Luján, which sent shock waves through the party and threatens President Joe Biden’s Supreme Court pick and already lagging legislative agenda.

The senator’s office announced that the 49-year-old Democrat remained hospitalized after suffering a stroke and is expected to make a full recovery. But Senate colleagues were blindsided by the news — even top-ranking leaders were reportedly unaware that Luján fell ill last Thursday, a stunning oversight. He could be away for at least a month.

Without Luján's presence, the party no longer has full day-to-day control of what has been an evenly split Senate, throwing Biden’s potential Supreme Court nomination, big priorities and even routine business into doubt in the face of Republican objections.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer spoke of the “awful, frightening” situation, but remained hopeful that Luján would be “back to his old self” before too long and said the Senate would carry on with its business.

“All of us are rooting for him every step of the way — between now and the day he makes his return to the Senate,” Schumer said Wednesday.

The uncertainty shows just how precarious the Democrats' hold on power in Washington really is and the limits of Biden's ability to usher what's left of a once-bold agenda through Congress. The president's chance to confirm a Supreme Court nominee, a hoped-for reset for the administration and the party, could be dangerously at risk if Democrats are unable to count on their majority to overcome hardening Republican opposition.

Already, routine Senate business was being rearranged Wednesday, as the Senate Commerce Committee announced it...