Missing Republican Rep. Has Racked Up Some Odd Travel Expenses
Representative Tom Kean Jr. has claimed he’s too sick to do his job in Congress—but he has apparently been perfectly fine traveling, approving staff expenditures, and trading stocks.
The New Jersey Republican has been missing in action since March 5, has so far missed 88 House votes, and hasn’t been seen in Washington for more than 75 days. Yet he has also taken Amtrak and used several ride share apps around San Francisco, according to pre-primary reports that Kean filed with the Federal Election Commission.
All the trips occurred in mid-April—several weeks into Kean’s unexplained disappearance.
Kean’s staff have also been traversing the country with their boss’s express approval. His chief of staff, Dan Scharfenberger, has obtained Kean’s signature since early March for at least two trips funded by special interest groups. They include a jaunt to Las Vegas, paid for by the Republican Main Street Partnership, and a trip to Middleburg, Virginia, for a “spring issues conference” sponsored by bipartisan policy organization Center Forward, NOTUS reported Friday.
The 57-year-old has also been trading stocks during his prolonged absence, buying and selling shares of Amcor, Chubb Limited, First Citizens BancShares, Johnson & Johnson, and PepsiCo, according to congressional financial records obtained by NOTUS. The combined value of the trades ranges from $50,008 to $190,000.
Kean initially offered a meager explanation late last month for his sudden disappearance, confessing to House Speaker Mike Johnson (after a small pressure campaign fronted by journalists and tristate lawmakers effectively forced him to pipe up) that he had been dealing with an unspecified “personal health matter.”
At the time, Kean promised that he would return to work shortly. It has been nearly four weeks since.
On Thursday, Kean told The New Jersey Globe that his health prognosis was “good” and that he would be transparent about his illness soon. He also said that he planned to return to Washington—and the campaign trail—in the coming weeks.
“My doctors are confident that I’m on the road to a full recovery,” Kean said in a lengthy phone interview. “I understand the need for public transparency, and I appreciate the support of my constituents.”
But the clock is ticking on Kean’s return: Johnson is in the midst of advancing a partisan budget reconciliation that faces total opposition from the Democratic Party. The speaker can spare just two Republican votes on the measure, if all Democrats are present and oppose it.
Kean was elected to represent New Jersey’s 7th congressional district in 2022, and is months away from being thrust into a contentious midterm reelection cycle. He is currently unchallenged in the Garden State’s Republican primary, scheduled for June 2, but is likely to face tremendous opposition from Democrats come November. Over the last several months, his district has shifted from a “lean Republican” advantage to a total toss-up, according to an analysis by the Cook Political Report.
