Democratic House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer hospitalized

July 5 (UPI) -- Minority Whip Steny Hoyer, the House's second-highest-ranking Democrat, was admitted to the hospital with pneumonia this week, a spokesman said.

"Mr. Hoyer was admitted to the George Washington University Hospital [Tuesday] and was diagnosed with pneumococcal pneumonia," Katie Grant, Hoyer's communications director, told CBS News.

"He is being treated with antibiotics and resting, and is expected to make a full recovery quickly. He looks forward to being back at work very soon."

The 79-year-old Maryland congressman was hospitalized after traveling to both Wisconsin and Illinois last weekend.

Hoyer visited Milwaukee as part of his "Pathways Out of Poverty" listening tour. In Illinois, he stopped at a community health center and held a roundtable discussion to discuss last week's Supreme Court decision on unions.

The 18-term congressman was elected to the House in 1981 and is the most senior member of the Democratic caucus. As Democratic whip, Hoyer is responsible for managing and tracking all party legislation on the House floor and ensuring caucus members are present for key votes.