Hillary Clinton taking some R&R

WASHINGTON, June 18 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., is taking time off from Congress to spend time with her family to recover from campaigning, friends and aides said.

She isn't expected to return to her congressional duties until July 7-8, after the Fourth of July recess, sources told The Hill.

"People understand this is a transition for her," Sen. Bob Casey Jr. , D-Pa., said.

Philippe Reines, Clinton's Senate spokesman said in a statement New York's junior senator "took some well-deserved R&R with her family last week, and she'll be back here before you know it. In the meantime, she continues to work for New York and America, and she'll be fighting harder than ever for the issues she has throughout her public life."

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., who supported Clinton's presidential bid, said the senator and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, "wanted to go somewhere private and far away where she could rest."