DENVER—U.S. Rep. John Salazar has missed more than one-fourth of the votes taken in the House of Representatives since he was defeated for re-election in November, The Denver Post reported Saturday.
Salazar has missed 28 of 99 votes in that time, the newspaper said, citing House records.
Salazar, the brother of Interior Secretary Ken Salazar, lost to Republican Scott Tipton. The Democrat has told The Pueblo Chieftain he’ll consider running for Congress again in 2012.
Salazar was present when the House recently passed a bill to extend tax cuts and unemployment benefits and a bill to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
But he was absent for final votes on a bill to fund health benefits for 9/11 cleanup workers and for a bill increasing food-safety protections. He did cast votes on preliminary balloting on the measures.
Salazar’s spokesman and his chief of staff didn’t return messages from the Post seeking comment, and Tipton declined to directly criticize him.
“But we have to make the effort to be there, especially with the importance of what is going on,” Tipton said.
Up until the November election, Salazar had missed 35 votes during the two-year session.
Democratic Rep. Betsy Markey, who also lost her re-election bid from her Colorado district, has missed the second-most votes in the last two months—16.
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Information from: The Denver Post,
