MAGA Utah Sen. Mike Lee has said that even members of Congress are in the dark about the current condition of Mitch McConnell.
Speculation about 84-year-old McConnell’s health has swirled after the Kentucky senator was found unconscious and required CPR at his Washington, D.C. home weeks ago.
McConnell’s team has refused to provide any meaningful update on his condition since he was hospitalized on June 14. The secrecy has fueled suggestions that there is an attempt to shield the full extent of the Republican’s condition from the public, and has raised serious questions about whether he’ll be able to return to office.
On Monday night, MAGA social media user Mila Joy speculated about why other senators have not spoken out about McConnell’s condition. “Because they are ALL in on it together. That’s why,” she posted to her 571,000 X followers.
In reply, Lee posted: “Many of us aren’t speaking about Mitch McConnell’s condition because we know nothing about his condition.”
However, Lee’s assessment contradicts the comments previously made by Senate Majority Leader John Thune after McConnell was first hospitalized. Thune claimed he had spoken to the 84-year-old and that he “sounded good.”
“He wants to be back, but I’ll defer to his staff on when,” Thune said on June 15.
Far-right activist Laura Loomer, who claims sources have told her that McConnell is in a “vegetative state,” dismissed Thune’s version of events.
“I was in South Dakota all week, and a Thune staffer told a source close to me and the White House that Mitch McConnell is in extreme organ failure,” Loomer posted.
McConnell’s staff announced June 14 that the Republican had been admitted to the hospital, but gave no real details about why or how serious his condition was.
Independent journalist Desirée Townsend later obtained EMS dispatch audio from when McConnell was found unconscious at his home after apparently suffering a cardiac arrest.
McConnell’s team has since repeatedly issued the same statement when asked for an update on his condition, merely saying he “appreciates the outpouring of support” while he continues treatment.
McConnell’s staff is led by his longtime, camera-shy aide Terry Carmack, who is on track to earn more than $226,000 this year.
Both Townsend and far-right activist Laura Loomer have claimed sources told them that McConnell is “brain dead” and that he will not be returning to the Senate.
“At this point, I am at the hospital for when they eventually decide to move cut him off of life support and move his body,” Townsend posted.
There have been questions about whether McConnell’s team is trying to avoid confirming that the senator will not be able to return to Congress to run out the clock and avoid a special election to replace him.
In 2024, the Kentucky legislature passed a law that stripped the state’s Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear of the power to replace the senator if he had to leave office early.
Instead, if McConnell were to resign or be found unable to continue serving before Aug. 3, Beshear would have to call a special election. After Aug. 3, a special election to replace McConnell and fill the remainder of his term would coincide with the general election in November.
McConnell, the longest-serving Senate party leader in history, confirmed that he would retire at the end of his current term in January 2027.
The 84-year-old’s final few years in office have been dogged by serious health issues and scares. These include concerning medical episodes in which he froze and stopped talking mid-sentence.
McConnell has also suffered multiple falls that have resulted in concussions, a broken wrist, and, at one point, needing to use a wheelchair.
The Daily Beast has contacted McConnell’s office for further comment.
