{"id":4858,"date":"2026-06-30T17:22:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T17:22:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usglobalnews.com\/2026\/06\/30\/republican-lawmaker-re-emerges-in-us-house-after-months-of-absence-over-depression\/"},"modified":"2026-06-30T17:22:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T17:22:17","slug":"republican-lawmaker-re-emerges-in-us-house-after-months-of-absence-over-depression","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/?p=4858","title":{"rendered":"Republican lawmaker re-emerges in US House after months of absence over \u2018depression\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-gu-name=\"media\" class=\"dcr-14sl0e4\">\n<div class=\"dcr-17l77cs\">\n<figure id=\"5ae23e54-0662-4ded-a445-608e982d30ed\" class=\"dcr-191xnya\">\n<div id=\"img-1\" class=\"dcr-1t7hdmw\"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"a man in a suit walks in a corridor while surrounded by people\" src=\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/c7fc4386fdf1f4da998e16688be9274c22c0ba10\/0_0_5500_3667\/master\/5500.jpg?width=465&amp;dpr=1&amp;s=none&amp;crop=none\" width=\"465\" height=\"310.0281818181818\" loading=\"eager\" class=\"dcr-up96pv\"><span class=\"dcr-kogzpx\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-18mnkpm\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1294qmb\"><label for=\"the-checkbox\" class=\"dcr-4sl2vt\"><\/label> <\/p>\n<div id=\"the-caption\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1mfxiaj\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Congressman Tom Kean Jr arrives for an expected floor speech at the US Capitol in Washington DC on Tuesday.<\/span> Photograph: Kylie Cooper\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/span><a href=\"#img-1\" data-ignore=\"global-link-styling\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-zwabc0\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><button data-element-id=\"5ae23e54-0662-4ded-a445-608e982d30ed\" type=\"button\" class=\"open-lightbox dcr-1bitgpn\" aria-haspopup=\"dialog\"><span class=\"dcr-1shbixy\">View image in fullscreen<\/span><\/button><\/a><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"dcr-qda0hp\"><figcaption data-spacefinder-role=\"inline\" class=\"dcr-1e9iiy9\"><span class=\"dcr-13i4yc9\"><\/span><span class=\"dcr-1cipnsy\">Congressman Tom Kean Jr arrives for an expected floor speech at the US Capitol in Washington DC on Tuesday.<\/span> Photograph: Kylie Cooper\/Reuters<\/figcaption><\/span><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"headline\" class=\"dcr-ql9l8l\">\n<div class=\"dcr-6mja0y\">\n<h1 class=\"dcr-l0wuod\">Republican returns to US House after months of absence over \u2018depression\u2019<\/h1>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"standfirst\" class=\"dcr-1xpojbf\">\n<div class=\"dcr-1gm5ptv\">\n<p>New Jersey\u2019s Tom Kean Jr, who last voted in March, says he was diagnosed with depression after entering hospital<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"body\" class=\"dcr-x1al2c\">\n<div class=\"dcr-11gq2tx\">\n<div id=\"maincontent\" class=\"dcr-1w2vkyc\">\n<div class=\"article-body-commercial-selector article-body-viewer-selector dcr-ogvvui\">\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Tom Kean Jr, a Republican congressman who disappeared from the Capitol for nearly four months with little explanation, re-emerged on Tuesday and said that he was absent while dealing with depression.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cSeveral months ago, due to health concerns, I entered the hospital for some testing. I did not believe that this would result in a long-term stay. I was given the diagnosis of depression,\u201d Kean said in a speech on the floor of the House Tuesday morning.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Kean, who represents a swing district in New Jersey, had last voted on 5 March before disappearing, with his office in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/apr\/24\/tom-kean-republican-congress\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">late April saying<\/a> only that he was dealing with a \u201cpersonal health matter\u201d and would be back \u201csoon\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In the first comments he has made since returning to Washington DC, the congressman did not say directly why he had kept his mental health struggles private, but described himself as a \u201cprivate person by nature\u201d, and indicated that the treatment for depression took longer than expected.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThe doctors recommended that I remain in the hospital to address my illness. They explained to me that this would be the fastest way to recover, and to be honest, I was hesitant. I didn\u2019t think that I had time for it,\u201d Kean said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Though he initially did not believe he would require a \u201clong-term stay\u201d to address his condition, Kean said: \u201cWhen I first informed the public that I was dealing with a medical issue, I was still trying to understand what was happening myself. When I said I hope to return in a matter of weeks, I believed it.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThose were the best estimates the doctors could provide, but as the over 48 million of my fellow Americans being treated for this illness have come to discover, there is no timeline for healing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">The congressman added that he was \u201cgrateful that I accepted help, because today I stand before you healthier, stronger, and excited to return to the work that I love\u201d.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Kean\u2019s mysterious absence fuelled speculation about where he might be, and what might have been keeping him away from the Capitol, where his absence complicated the GOP\u2019s ability to control of the House of Representatives. Last week, a New York Times reporter <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2026\/06\/24\/nyregion\/tom-kean-missing-found.html\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">found Kean<\/a> at his New Jersey home, but the congressman declined to comment.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">Kean reportedly traded stocks during the months he was absent, drawing criticism from Democrats who are hoping to unseat him and win the House majority in November\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In comments before Kean\u2019s speech, the Republican House speaker, Mike Johnson, downplayed his absence while indicating it could have been better explained.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">\u201cThere\u2019s no conspiracy involved in this, there\u2019s nothing scandalous at all. He has a health condition, as he said,\u201d Johnson told reporters. \u201cIf it were me, I would have been more specific about that, and I encouraged him to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dcr-1s160rg\">In 2023, the Democratic senator John Fetterman sought inpatient treatment for depression, but in that case, his office promptly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2023\/feb\/16\/senator-john-fetterman-hospital-clinical-depression\" data-link-name=\"in body link\">announced<\/a> his hospitalization.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-print-layout=\"hide\" class=\"dcr-swayiu\"><span class=\"dcr-1xhbmzr\">Explore more on these topics<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-2c03t5\">\n<ul class=\"dcr-p7nd18\">\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/house-of-representatives\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">House of Representatives<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/us-politics\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">US politics<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/new-jersey\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">New Jersey<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/us-news\/republicans\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">Republicans<\/a><\/li>\n<li class=\"dcr-r721ee\"><a href=\"\/tone\/news\" class=\"dcr-856iwi\">news<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dcr-313bdz\"><a href=\"mailto:?subject=Republican%20returns%20to%20US%20House%20after%20months%20of%20absence%20over%20%E2%80%98depression%E2%80%99&amp;body=https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/us-news\/2026\/jun\/30\/tom-kean-jr-house-absence-returns?CMP=share_btn_url\" class=\"dcr-ncybeu\">Share<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"dcr-19bkree\"><a data-link-name=\"meta-syndication-article\" href=\"https:\/\/syndication.theguardian.com\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theguardian.com%2Fus-news%2F2026%2Fjun%2F30%2Ftom-kean-jr-house-absence-returns&amp;type=article&amp;internalpagecode=us-news\/2026\/jun\/30\/tom-kean-jr-house-absence-returns\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\" title=\"Reuse this content\" class=\"dcr-1c41onw\">Reuse this content<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-gu-name=\"right-column\" class=\"dcr-axwinp\"><span class=\"dcr-1ryr20k\"><\/span><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Congressman Tom Kean Jr arrives for an expected floor speech at the US Capitol in Washington DC on<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":4860,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4858","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4858"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4858\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4860"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4858"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4858"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.usglobalnews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4858"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}