Right On The Right

One of the 2008 Presidential hopefuls on the Republican side has been missing a lot of work to hit the campaign trail. You'd figure with all the votes he's missing, he'd be polling higher than 1 or 2%. Sam Brownback has missed more votes than anyone in the Senate, except for the guy in a near-coma.

BROWNBACK LEADS THE FIELD IN MISSED VOTES

Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., has been playing an awful lot of hooky these days. Last month, he missed more than half of his Senate roll call votes, according to AbsentCongress.org, a Web site launched Thursday that tracks senatorial absenteeism.

Only Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., who remains hospitalized after a life-threatening brain hemorrhage, has missed more. Johnson, who staffers say is making steady progress in his recovery, hasn't made it to any votes yet.

Brownback showed up 48 percent of the time. As a presidential hopeful, he probably has his hands full. Yet rival senators who are also moonlighting as '08 contenders have higher attendance records – though the campaign season remains young.

Even John Kerry has been to the Senate more than Brownback, and Kerry was bashed repeatedly in the 2004 Campaign for not showing up. Brownback, do the job you're elected for before worrying about the promotion.