U.S. Senate vote on Fed nominee Shelton in doubt as Grassley quarantines

The exposure of another Republican senator to the coronavirus raised doubts on Tuesday about the U.S. Senate’s vote on Republican President Donald Trump’s controversial pick for the Federal Reserve, former economic adviser Judy Shelton.

U.S. Republican Senator Chuck Grassley, the chamber’s president pro tempore, said he was in quarantine after being exposed to the coronavirus and awaiting test results.

Asked what effect that could have on the vote, expected Tuesday afternoon, Senate Majority Whip John Thune was equivocal. “Yeah we’ll see,” he told reporters. “With the absences now, we have some attendance issues, so it’s a little bit fluid, I’d say at the moment.”