Capitol Hill baffled by mysterious vanishing of House Republican

WASHINGTON — Lawmakers responded on Friday to reports that Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ), who has been missing from Congress for more than 78 days, had broken his silence.

Kean spoke publicly for the first time on Thursday, telling David Wildstein, editor of The New Jersey Globe, that he was "nearing a return to work and intends to discuss publicly the health issue that has sidelined him since March."

The Republican is running for re-election in a highly contested swing seat and has confirmed he plans to continue in the race for a third term. Since he disappeared from the public eye, Kean has missed dozens of votes amid speculation about his whereabouts, while social media posts have continued to be published on his X account.

In exclusive interviews with Raw Story, several lawmakers reacted to news that Kean had gone missing — and what they thought of his absence.

"I couldn't tell you who he was if he was standing in front of me," said Rep. Angie Craig (D-MN), laughing. "He's not one of the ones that I work with."

Rep. Chuck Fleischmann (R-TN) said he hasn't seen or heard from Kean in months.

"I've just been told that he's been under the weather and thank God he's getting better and will be back soon. I've heard nothing," Fleischmann said. "I don't know — we've just heard absolutely nothing. It's amazing because usually when somebody has a malady, it's out there. I feel for him — I just don't know."

Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) said he didn't know who Kean was.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-MA) asked if something had happened to Kean, adding that he had no idea what happened.

"Keep an eye out for him," Lynch said.