WASHINGTON, March 19 (Reuters) – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, the chamber’s No. 2 Democrat, said on Sunday that he will quarantine after testing positive for COVID-19, adding to a number of lawmakers from both parties who have been absent from the Senate.
“Thankfully, I am fully vaccinated and boosted and only experiencing minor symptoms,” Durbin said in a tweet.
The Illinois Democrat said he would follow Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, which call for five days of quarantine for those who test positive.
Two other Democrats, Senators Dianne Feinstein and John Fetterman, have been absent from the Senate for health reasons. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell entered a rehabilitation facility last week after fracturing a rib in a fall earlier this month.
Democrats hold a narrow 51-49 majority in the Senate, which is expected to vote this week on legislation to repeal the 1991 and 2002 Authorizations for the Use of Military Force, or AUMFs, against Iraq.
Reporting by David Morgan
Editing by Chris Reese
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