Rep. Vance McAllister, R-La., missed yet another day of votes today, his third since video of him kissing a staffer in his district office surfaced on a Louisiana newspaper's website on Monday.
McAllister has now missed all ten votes the House has held this week, and his office has not said when he plans to return to DC, only saying "he reiterates his request for privacy for his family during this difficult period."
And while most members are sensitive to McAllister's need to deal with his issues at home, they also say that the longer he's gone, the more questions will be asked.
"The longer he's not up here, the longer he's in his district and not working by being here for votes and working on his job, obviously the more paralyzed he is as a functional Congressman," Rep. John Fleming, R-La., a fellow member of the Louisiana delegation said. "So he needs to resolve this quickly and get back to work or again it's obviously his district is not going to be happy with him not being on the job."
Sources tell NBC News the chairman of the Louisiana Republican Party has attempted to get in touch with McAllister, but has yet to hear back. Fleming has not heard from McAllister either, but said the embattled congressman should return the party chair's phone calls.
"He's got a lot on his hands right now," Fleming said, "He's got his family to take care of, there's another family that's been hurt in all of this, he needs to be taking care of these problems down there and resolving them."
An aide for House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., says that he spoke to McAllister very briefly Wednesday, but that they did not have the time to discuss the situation. An aide for Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, says that McAllister has yet to call the Speaker.
