Beyond the Dome

In crass political terms, it usually doesn't make a lot of sense for presidential candidates to return to the Senate for votes. But if Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama show up for tonight's vote on a wage discrimination bill, as they're expected to, they'll be following the basic advice of most political operatives: Only come back when you get a clear advantage out of it.

Sure, there are sticklers who might argue that a senator's job is to show up for votes. But in the thick of a presidential campaign, especially when they're closing in on the nomination or have already won it, there are too many other things to do: Build your campaign organization, raise money, visit swing states over and over again to win every last vote.

That's why veterans of Democratic Sen. John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign say a candidate should only come back to the Senate if it's a vote they can brag about on the campaign trail, or one that somehow dovetails with their campaign message.

Anything else, they say, and you're better off staying away.

Tonight's vote on the Fair Pay Restoration Act, which would make it easier for workers to sue employers over pay discrimination, easily passes the test for Obama and Clinton. They're both cosponsors, and they'll be able to tell Democratic primary voters they stood up for equal pay for men and women.

For John McCain, who won't be here, it would have been a lousy vote to take. He hasn't said how he would have voted if he were here, but many Republicans are expected to oppose the bill. And the Bush administration has threatened to veto it, saying the measure would expose employers to lawsuits years after the alleged discrimination took place.

Given how strongly most Republicans feel about curbing lawsuits, it would be hard for McCain to come back and vote for the bill, although some of his Democratic colleagues will find a way to criticize him for it.

"I'm glad that Senator Clinton and Senator Obama care enough about equal pay for women to come back," Sen. Charles E. Schumer said at a press conference this afternoon. "Senator McCain, who has already won his party's nomination, isn't coming back. Doesn't he care about equal pay and fair treatment for women?"

Still, there's little to be gained in a general election by flying back just to vote against it.

By contrast, if McCain ever gets a vote on his "gas tax holiday" legislation, it would be a good reason for him to return. It's a central part of his campaign economic plan, after all.

But for Clinton, who likes the idea but wants to pay for it through a windfall profit tax on oil companies, and Obama, who hasn't said what he thinks, it probably would make more sense to stay on the trail and meet some more voters.