A veteran Republican senator returned to Capitol Hill after a three-month medical absence, but his limited public appearance quickly gave way to another round of questions about whether he can complete his term.
Only days after colleagues welcomed GOP Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky back and described him as engaged, his name was missing from two Senate votes and his office offered no immediate public explanation.
McConnell missed two votes Thursday after returning to the Senate on Monday for the first time in 92 days following a fall, hospitalization and extended rehabilitation.
The 84-year-old Republican was hospitalized in June after falling at his Washington home and was subsequently treated for mild pneumonia before spending more than seven weeks in a rehabilitation facility.
He returned to the Capitol in a wheelchair and acknowledged that his recovery remained incomplete, telling reporters that he was “not quite back to 100%.”
After decades of fielding questions from the Capitol press corps, McConnell joked that he had wondered how many reporters would be waiting for his return.
“I must admit, after two years of — decades actually — of dodging your questions, I wasn’t sure how many of you would be here today,” McConnell said.
Some Republican senators offered encouraging assessments, with North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis saying he had a lengthy policy discussion with McConnell that reminded him of the senator’s familiar working style.
McConnell also participated in a Senate Agriculture Committee meeting as lawmakers advanced a farm bill, although he spoke quietly and had to repeat his “aye” vote.
Mitch McConnell disappears after long-awaited return: ‘Missing in action again’
The bill ultimately advanced 12-11 along party lines, making McConnell’s vote consequential to the committee outcome.
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Concerns returned after McConnell missed two Senate votes Thursday, with no explanation immediately provided by his office for the renewed absence.
BlazeTV host Pat Gray seized on the development and argued that conservatives should apply the same standards to McConnell that they previously applied to former President Joe Biden.
“Mitch McConnell didn’t show up for work yesterday,” Gray said while discussing the senator’s brief return with members of his program.
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“Took three months to get that body double to look just right on the C-SPAN camera,” executive producer Keith Malinak joked before Gray said McConnell was “missing in action again.”
Malinak then argued that McConnell was no longer capable of serving effectively and compared his condition unfavorably with what employers would expect from an ordinary worker.
“This man is not qualified to be a Walmart greeter,” Malinak said before insisting that the Kentucky senator “should leave now.”
Gray agreed that consistency required conservatives to express the same concern about McConnell’s ability to serve that they voiced during Biden’s presidency.
“We were outraged by Biden,” Gray said, adding, “If you’re going to be consistent, you’ve got to be outraged by this as well.”
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McConnell has already announced that he will retire when his current term ends in January 2027, concluding a Senate career that began in 1985.
His health has drawn increasing attention following falls, freezing episodes during public appearances and the lengthy absence that caused him to miss dozens of votes.
McConnell has not announced plans to resign early and said during his return that he remained committed to working on major legislation as his health permitted.
The unanswered question is how frequently his recovery will allow him to participate during his final months, particularly when Republicans may need every available vote, The Blaze
Thursday’s absences do not establish that McConnell has again left Washington for an extended period, but they renewed the scrutiny that his carefully managed return had only briefly quieted.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author’s opinion.
