By admin 
As the Senate plans to reconvene Monday in Washington, D.C., whether Sen. Mitch McConnell will attend is still unknown after nearly a month of hospitalization.
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McConnell, 84, was hospitalized June 14, but his team did not give details about his condition at the time, only saying he was receiving “excellent care.” Throughout his hospitalization, the public has received few details surrounding his health condition.
After weeks of quiet, his office confirmed July 2 that he was still recovering in the hospital. A spokesperson at the time said McConnell was continuing to improve and “is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters.”
McConnell’s office did not respond to questions Friday on whether he would be return to the Senate Monday.
According to a Friday CNN report, emergency responders took McConnell to an ambulance on a stretcher after being called to his Washington, D.C., home for an unconscious person last month. A video taken by a neighbor of McConnell shows emergency responders bringing someone on a stretcher to an ambulance, but the person’s face is not visible.
The neighbor said they learned from another eyewitness who saw that the person’s face was McConnell’s, and he was not wearing an oxygen mask.
McConnell’s team also did not comment on CNN’s report.
As minimal updates are shared on McConnell’s health, Democrats and Republicans both have sought more transparency, with some asking if he’s still fit to serve in office.
Lt. Gov. Jacqueline Coleman told WNKY Television Friday she wishes his family the best, and “the sooner they release his status, probably the better.”
“But I also want folks to make sure they give a little grace here because being an elected official is a very public job, and we all recognize that,” Coleman said “But also, this is a very serious situation with some serious health issues, so I do think we need some more information so we all kinda know where we are.”
Earlier this week, Gov. Andy Beshear sent a letter to McConnell asking him to share more information on his health, writing that he and McConnell have “made a commitment to do our best to represent them and always be transparent.”
Some Republicans are echoing similar remarks. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-South Carolina, suggested in a social media post July 9 that McConnell may need to step down.
“If McConnell is in as bad a shape as Biden ever was — or worse — he needs to step aside,” Mace said in a July 9 post on X. “This charade can’t continue. We can’t demand of others what we won’t demand of ourselves.”
In an interview with News Nation Thursday morning, Rep. Marlin Stutzman, an Indiana Republican, said he doesn’t know about McConnell’s status.
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“As a Republican, I think we need to hold our own party accountable, so the fact that we haven’t heard anything really from Sen. McConnell is very discouraging and concerning,” Stutzman said. “The things that I’ve heard and seen from some friends are that he’s obviously not doing well, but I don’t know if he’s alive or has passed away.”
Despite questions from Stutzman and others, as well as unconfirmed rumors online about McConnell’s status, some Republicans say they have spoken to McConnell and addressed widespread rumors about his health.
Scott Jennings, a former McConnell adviser and conservative political commentator on CNN, said in a Tuesday social media post he spoke with McConnell around the phone for around 20 minutes on a variety of topics. Later on CNN, he denied some speculation circulating social media surrounding McConnell’s health.
“I’ve seen rumors about him being dead, or brain-dead, or his body is being hidden somewhere,” Jennings said. “I’ve seen all kinds of crazy things on the internet that’s obviously not true because he picked up the phone and called me.”
Rep. Brett Guthrie, who represents Kentucky’s 2nd Congressional District, said that he has texted with McConnell but hasn’t spoken with him directly.
“I don’t know much more than what the public knows,” Guthrie said. “I know there were some rumors that came out … And I think those rumors were obviously false.”
Republican Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman told WHAS11 News Thursday he’s been in touch with McConnell.
“There is a modicum of privacy, most certainly that he deserves. Maybe this hits me uniquely close to home. I was privileged to serve as his legal counsel,” Russell Coleman said. “There is a point where those that you elect to these offices have a modicum of privacy, and I’m not going to expand on where that line is.”
Majority Leader John Thune and Senate Whip John Barrasso, both Republicans, have spoken to McConnell on the phone this week, according to their spokespersons.
Others are being kept in the dark though, including Sen. Mike Lee, a Utah Republican, who said details about the 84-year-old Republican aren’t being shared with fellow lawmakers.
“Many of us aren’t speaking about Mitch McConnell’s condition because we know nothing about his condition,” Lee said in a post to X on July 7.
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