USA · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
Mitch McConnell Returns to Senate After Three-Month Absence Following June 14 Fall
McConnell returned to the Senate after a three-month health absence following a June fall. He cast his first Senate vote since June while arriving in a wheelchair.
Whether transparency failure is attributed to McConnell or highlighted via his….
2 of 3 outlets skipped it: mcConnell joked about reporters being there after years of dodging questions.
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Newsweek
“"Absolutely none," Beshear said in an interview with Newsweek's Alex J. Rouhandeh.”Read the original ↗
CNN
“he did not answer questions, including whether he should have been more transparent about his health during his absence.”Read the original ↗
Newsweek emphasises the governor's “zero communication” accusation, while CNN spotlights McConnell refusing to answer transparency questions.
Return After Fall
Sen. Mitch McConnell returned to the Senate on Monday for the first time after a three-month absence following a fall at his Washington, D.C., home that left him hospitalized on June 14.
“"Today, I'll cast my first Senate vote since I took a bad fall back in June,"”
McConnell, 84, said in a statement, "Today, I'll cast my first Senate vote since I took a bad fall back in June," and he told reporters he was "really looking forward to being back on the Senate floor and seeing my colleagues."
His office previously said he was discharged from a rehabilitation center on August 6, after emergency personnel responded to a 911 call about an unconscious person at his Washington home.
Multiple outlets tied the return to the Senate reconvening after a five-week summer recess, with the Senate set to reconvene at 3 p.m. on September 14, while McConnell’s timing remained uncertain until he appeared on the floor.
CNN reported that McConnell arrived in a wheelchair for the evening vote series, and that he said he was "still not quite back to 100%" while continuing physical therapy on the advice of his doctors.C
Transparency and Pressure
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear criticized McConnell’s lack of updates, saying he had received "zero communication" from the state's senior senator as of Friday and arguing that the people of Kentucky were "his boss."
Beshear also said, "Absolutely none," and he pressed that if McConnell lacked the capacity to serve, he should resign, while Newsweek reported McConnell’s staff declined to provide an update on his possible return.N
McConnell’s spokesperson David Popp told USA TODAY that "we will be sure to let everyone know if we have any guidance or announcements," and Newsweek reported Popp wrote, "No additional guidance or announcements."N
In his July disclosures, McConnell said he was "briefly unconscious" after the fall and later contracted pneumonia, and he said he would maintain an intensive physical therapy regimen from home during the state work period.
After returning, McConnell told reporters, "Time to get back to work, finish the job for this Congress," while Thune said he was "hopeful" he can rely on McConnell’s presence at votes and that "we welcome having him here."
Votes, Committees, Stakes
McConnell’s return came as questions remained about how much of his Senate workload he could resume, with USA TODAY noting he had not made an official announcement about his return to work even as the Senate marked its return from recess on Sept. 14.
“McConnell said he would be focused on the farm bill”
NBC News reported that McConnell said he would be focused on the farm bill, and it described a farm bill markup Wednesday in the Senate Agriculture Committee that had previously failed to advance out of committee due to McConnell's absence.
Fox News said McConnell’s first appearance on the Senate floor since June was to vote in favor of President Donald Trump's judicial pick, Matthew R. Byrne, to be the U.S. District Judge for the Southern District of Ohio.
CNN reported that McConnell said he would do his best to be present for tough votes when "our Conference needs me," and it quoted Senate Majority Leader John Thune saying, "as much as he can do, we welcome having him here."C
The New York Times described McConnell’s return as ending an absence of more than 13 weeks, with his office saying he suffered a fall at his Capitol Hill home on June 14 and he was transported to George Washington University Hospital before being released and returning home on Aug. 6.