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Mitch McConnell Returns to Senate After Three-Month Absence
Confirmed
In Short: Mitch McConnell has returned to the Senate after a three-month absence, citing a long and frustrating recovery from a fall and childhood polio.
Mitch McConnell, the Senate Minority Leader from Kentucky, has resumed his duties after a three-month absence, a period marked by public speculation and criticism over his condition.
In a statement, McConnell acknowledged the challenges of his recovery, stating, 'My recovery has been a long and often frustrating process, and the lingering effects of childhood polio haven’t made it any easier.
His return to the Senate floor was met with a vote on a judicial nomination, and he expressed his eagerness to resume his work, saying, 'Time to get back to work, finish the job for this Congress.
The Kentucky senator's absence had raised concerns about the capacity of lawmakers, particularly older ones, to fulfill their duties, with Governor Andy Beshear urging public updates on his health.
What's confirmed
- “My recovery has been a long and often frustrating process, and the lingering effects of childhood polio haven’t made it any easier," McConnell said in a statement Monday.
- Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has returned to the Senate after a long absence.
What's still developing
- “I’m still not quite back to 100%, but I’ve assured Leader Thune that, as I continue with physical therapy on the advice of my doctors, I will do my best to be present for tough votes when our Conference needs me.” The concerns over McConnell’s absence highlighted increasing public concern about the age of lawmakers and their capacity to carry out their duties.
- Andy Beshear took the extraordinary step of issuing a public letter asking McConnell to update the public in a “transparent manner.” McConnell’s absence was also felt over the summer as Republicans were unable to advance a farm bill out of committee.
- "Today, I'll cast my first Senate vote since I took a bad fall back in June. I'm really looking forward to being back on the Senate floor and seeing my colleagues," McConnell said in a statement ahead of his return.
- Three days later, his office announced he had been hospitalized, on the same day that emergency medical personnel went to his home to respond to an unconscious person, according to a public EMS dispatch call that did not mention the former Senate majority leader by name.
- In the following days, McConnell's office said the Kentucky Republican was "fully engaged" with his staff, and a handful of top Republicans said they had spoken to him by phone.
- After Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear formally sought an update on McConnell's health in July, McConnell put out his first statement since the hospitalization, which he said resulted from a fall, while noting that he had moved to a rehabilitation center.
- On Aug. 6, McConnell said he was discharged from the rehab center to continue his recovery at home, nearly two months after being hospitalized.
- The prolonged absence comes after McConnell, a childhood polio survivor, has faced a number of health scares in recent years.