Beshear Presses McConnell for Health Update After 36-Day Senate Absence
Updated
Updated · Newsweek · Jul 20
Beshear Presses McConnell for Health Update After 36-Day Senate Absence
2 articles · Updated · Newsweek · Jul 20
Summary
36 days after Mitch McConnell was hospitalized, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said Monday he has received “absolutely nothing” from the senator or his office about McConnell’s condition.
Beshear said the silence is “concerning” because McConnell has missed Senate votes for a month, arguing Kentuckians deserve to know whether their 84-year-old senator can still perform his duties.
July 12 brought McConnell’s first public explanation in weeks: he said he became briefly unconscious after a fall on June 14, was treated for mild pneumonia, and did not suffer a stroke, heart attack or concussion.
Kentucky law gives Beshear no power to trigger a special election over illness or absence alone; a vacancy through resignation, death or expulsion would be required.
The dispute is widening a broader debate in Congress over how much health information elected officials should disclose when prolonged medical absences affect representation.