Sen. Ben Lujan, 49, RETURNS to work just one month after stroke to vote on Biden's FCC pick


Democratic Senator Ben Lujan, 49, RETURNS to work just one month after his stroke to vote on Biden’s pick to lead the FCC – who has faced fierce Republican opposition

  • ‘It’s good to be back. I’ll tell ya, I missed you all,’ the New Mexico Democrat said
  • He received a standing ovation from his fellow senators as he entered the room 
  • With Lujan’s vote, a divided Senate Commerce Committee voted along party lines to advance Gigi Sohn out of committee
  • The FCC has been split 2-2 between Republicans and Democrats and Sohn’s confirmation would give Democrats a 3-2 majority
  • Her arrival could get the FCC moving on policy initiatives like net neutrality rules 


Democratic Sen. Ben Ray Lujan returned to Congress Wednesday for the first time in a month since suffering a stroke, just in time to cast his vote to advance Federal Communications Commission nominee Gigi Sohn out of the Senate Commerce Committee. 

‘To every one of you that sent me notes, that sent videos, and all the prayers, it worked. And it’s good to be back. I’ll tell ya, I missed you all,’ the New Mexico Democrat said as he returned to work. 

He received a standing ovation from his fellow senators as he entered the room.  

News of Luján’s stroke, which was released by his office five days after he was hospitalized for it, took Capitol Hill by surprise. At 49, the freshman Democrat is on the younger side in a chamber whose median age is about 63.

After a stint at an in-patient rehabilitation center, the senator vowed to return to Congress in a ‘few more weeks’ and promised he would be back to vote on President Biden’s Supreme Court nominee, Kentanji Jackson Brown.  

With Lujan’s vote, a divided Senate Commerce Committee voted along party lines to advance Sohn out of committee and to send her nomination to a full floor vote. The vote was 14-14, and with a tie vote a nominee can get a floor vote but without a favorable or unfavorable recommendation.

The FCC has been split 2-2 between Republicans and Democrats and Sohn’s confirmation would give Democrats a 3-2 majority. Her arrival could get the FCC moving on policy initiatives like net neutrality rules.  

With Lujan's vote, a divided Senate Commerce Committee voted along party lines to advance FCC pick Gigi Sohn out of committee and to send her nomination to a full floor vote

With Lujan’s vote, a divided Senate Commerce Committee voted along party lines to advance FCC pick Gigi Sohn out of committee and to send her nomination to a full floor vote

Gigi Sohn, above, has drawn sharp GOP opposition, in part due to critical remarks she has made of Fox News

Gigi Sohn, above, has drawn sharp GOP opposition, in part due to critical remarks she has made of Fox News

Sohn, an open-internet advocate, could help advance President Biden’s promise to restore Obama-era net neutrality rules, which would require internet providers to treat all web traffic the same.  

Sohn has drawn sharp GOP opposition, in part due to critical remarks she has made of Fox News. 

Sohn was grilled in December over her past tweets calling the news network state-sponsored propaganda. Sohn, a Georgetown University law professor, acknowledged that her tweets were ‘concerning to some’ but stood by her record and said any internal bias would not influence her work.

‘I’ve got a list of comments here about Fox News, are you biased against them?’ Sen. Roy Blunt asked her.  

‘I understand they’re concerning to some, and anyone who knows me knows i’m pretty direct, she said. And anyone who knows me knows I’m pretty direct. But they were made in my role as a public advocate.’

Maybe the tone was a little sharper – maybe I should have dulled it a little bit,’ she said. She said it was part of her job as a public interest advocate.

Blunt then asked her about the ‘state sponsored’ comment.

‘My opinions as a public interest advocate will have no bearing on how I will behave as a policymaker,’ she responded. She said it would have no bearing on how she would rule in a proceeding with any of those companies.

The hearing became so contentious that Sohn had to appear again in February, where she agreed to recuse herself from some broadcast regulatory issues due to her role as president of Public Knowledge, a group that advocates for free and open internet and affordable access to communications. 

Democrats need every vote in their caucus to advance federal and judicial nominees, which are not subject to the Senate filibuster, and they do not need any votes from Republicans. In the 50-50 Senate, Vice President Kamala Harris serves as the tie-breaking vote.  

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