Senator Marsha Blackburn Slinks Out of D.C. Before Senate Vote

Senator Marsha Blackburn tried hiding in plain view as she slithered out of Washington D.C. ... hours BEFORE her colleagues voted on a bill that would provide thousands of federal workers with what they need to survive -- A PAYCHECK.

The Tennessee Senator used an escort to shield herself from the camera as she made her way to the security checkpoint at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

Blackburn, who's running for Governor of Tennessee, got out of Dodge at 6 PM ... 8 hours before the Senate voted to restore funding to TSA, FEMA, certain Coast Guard members and other federal workers who have gone without pay for a month.

Here's the big problem -- the House has yet to vote as of the time of this post, and if they don't approve the Senate plan, it all goes back to the drawing board. True, Trump said Thursday he would sign an executive order funding TSA, but thousands of other federal workers are twisting in the wind, waiting for a paycheck.

It's do or die for Congress ... if they don't reach an agreement Friday, they won't for the next 2 weeks because they're all on recess ... many of whom will enjoy spring break with their families as federal workers lose their homes, their cars, and their sanity.

True, the 2 AM vote was unanimous and members are not required to be there, but if the deal fell apart, she would have to be present in D.C. So Blackburn rolled the dice, and one Congressional source told us she wasn't alone.

No matter what, it was clear ... Marsha didn't want to show her face as she left town.