Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell has been released from a rehabilitation center and will continue recovering at home, the 84-year-old Republican said in a statement on Thursday.
“On the advice of my doctors, I’ll maintain an intensive regimen of physical therapy from home during the state work period, and I’ll continue to engage with my staff and colleagues on important Senate business,” he said.
What happened to Mitch McConnell?
Mitch McConnell has been away from the Senate since falling at his home in June. His office initially gave few details, saying only that he was “continuing to improve.”
A month later, McConnell revealed that the fall, along with a mild case of pneumonia, led to his hospitalization and extended recovery.
“Last month, I took a fall which landed me in the hospital,” McConnell said in a statement.
“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion,” he added. “I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages. But I was briefly unconscious and was taken to the hospital. While receiving excellent care over the past several weeks, I’ve also had to deal with a mild case of pneumonia.”
His office also released a photo of McConnell with his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, at the hospital.
In late July, his office said he had not yet been cleared to return to work. Since his injury, McConnell has not appeared in public and has communicated only through written statements and photos released by his office.
Netizens demand ‘proof of life’ video
After news of McConnell’s release from the rehabilitation center, some social media users questioned why he had not appeared in public and called for a “proof of life” video.
One person wrote on X, “Nobody believes this absolute potato Mitch Mcconnell is out of rehab and on his way home with no video proof.”
Another added, “Mitch McConnell has been officially discharged from the hospital. And we still have not seen a true proof of life video.”
A third user commented, “We need to see proof of life. Even John Thune says he hasn’t seen Mitch McConnell since Mitch was hospitalized…Why have we not received the slightest notion that McConnell isn’t a vegetable or worse?”
Andy Beshear calls for transparency
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, has called on McConnell to be more transparent about his health and whether he is fit to continue serving in the Senate.
In a letter, Beshear urged McConnell to “directly and verbally address the people of Kentucky and provide proof of your capacity to serve, or resign.”
McConnell is not seeking reelection and is set to leave office in January. Republican Representative Andy Barr won the GOP primary and is the favorite to face Democrat Charles Booker in November.
