Where is Mitch McConnell? The People Deserve Answers

Voters have a right to know whether the people in power are healthy enough to do their jobs — and some Republicans have shown courage in demanding that their own party stop stonewalling and start answering.

By Alex Buscemi, Editorial Manager at Builders | 5 min read

It’s been more than six weeks since Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was last seen in public. And a lack of transparency about his health has sparked a whirlwind of rumors and questions. Setting aside conspiracy theories that McConnell has died and Republicans are propping up his corpse in a demented sort of Weekend at Bernie’s situation, the question remains: Is the 84-year-old who has held his seat for 42 years still fit for office? 

It’s been tough to get a straight answer, as is often the case when an aging politician’s fitness comes into question and fellow party members rush to their defense. We all watched Joe Biden freeze, wander the stage aimlessly, and struggle to keep a train of thought during his presidency, yet we were force-fed assurances he was sharp behind closed doors. 

The majority of statements on McConnell have been no different. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) reported that McConnell was "alert, focused, and mentally sharp" and that his recovery is purely focused on physical mobility. But Mitch’s decline has been highly visible for years, especially since his 2023 press conference, where he trailed off mid-speech with a drawn-out "uh," then stared vacantly for roughly 20 seconds before colleagues took him by the elbows and ushered him back to his office.

Others defending Mitch have defaulted to an old favorite: telling us to stop asking such questions and respect his privacy. Senators like John Kennedy (R-LA) told critics to simply "leave Mitch alone." But these privacies go out the window when you’re sworn into public office. We deserve to know whether the people holding our lives in their hands are physically and mentally capable of doing their jobs.

Yet from Mitch, all we’ve gotten are boilerplate press releases. 

In the most recent update this week, the congressional Office of the Attending Physician says that the senator “is not yet medically cleared to leave the rehab facility and return to the office.” A statement, purportedly from McConnell, adds that he is “working hard to get back to my full schedule of work in the Senate and in Kentucky, keeping up with intense physical therapy per my doctors’ orders… Unfortunately, that means I won’t be able to make it to Fancy Farm, Kentucky, this Saturday.” (The Fancy Farm picnic is an annual event where Kentucky politicians campaign to large crowds.)

McConnell’s office has also released two photos this month of him sitting and smiling next to his wife in the rehab facility. 

But none of this confirms that McConnell is capable of leading Kentucky. The statements could have been typed by anybody in his office. A photo doesn't prove that McConnell can make sound decisions. And skipping Fancy Farm this weekend — a marquee event in his own backyard — does little to alleviate these concerns.

Nobody's asking him to sprint across the stage. But bring him out (even if it’s in a wheelchair), point a camera at him, and let him speak for himself. That's the bar, and it's a low one.

There are a couple of reasons his office and fellow Republicans would benefit from controlling the narrative around his health.

If he vacates his seat before August 3, it could trigger a special election to fill the seat temporarily until the winner of the November midterms is sworn in on January 3. Some congressional Republicans don't want to risk a special election, fearing that GOP voters could nominate someone like Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) over a candidate friendlier to the establishment. (Massie got the nickname “Mr. No” for consistently refusing to toe the party line.) McConnell announced he would retire this year anyway. So if the seat becomes vacant after August 3, it passes safely to the winner of the November election, where the Mitch-approved Rep. Andy Barr is the Republican nominee.

Another reason Republicans may want to keep McConnell in his seat: legal experts say Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, may launch a constitutional challenge if the seat is vacated before the early August deadline. Beshear would fight to overturn the 2024 law that requires the special election. This would return things to the way they were before, with the governor (that means Beshear) deciding who fills the seat from a shortlist supplied by the vacating senator's party.

Denying Americans their right to transparency in favor of political gamesmanship is hardly unprecedented in our politics. But not everyone in the Republican Party is playing along. 

Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) said: "At a certain point you do have an obligation to your constituents and the country to tell them what's going on," adding, “I hope he recovers, but I also hope that they get the transparency out there to help people know what the situation is." 

Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) stated, "Somebody needs to do something. Somebody needs to come out and put a little video out," and said that the photos of McConnell and his wife are insufficient. 

These calls for transparency deserve real credit. In a political climate this polarized, criticizing your own side takes nerve, and those who break ranks get branded traitors for it. That same fear is likely what kept Democrats worried about Biden's decline from saying so out loud during his presidency, until a debate stage said it for them. Every time that instinct wins, accountability loses.

That fear is also why detractors are greatly outnumbered by those keen to shut out the electorate. Scott Jennings, a former McConnell staffer turned political commentator who claims to have spoken with McConnell, was asked by CNN about the radio silence surrounding the senator. His reply: “Ultimately, these officeholders — you know, they’re in charge of their own operations.”

That’s right: they’re in charge. You may see with your own eyes the signs of serious health problems: the bruised hands, the falls, the vacant stares. But according to Jennings — and far too many of our elected officials — they know better than you do. And that’s a sentiment fewer and fewer Americans are willing to tolerate.

Alex Buscemi can be reached at abuscemi@buildersmovement.org

The silence and lack of transparency in our government can make people feel shut out of the system, but you still have a voice, and with midterms now less than 100 days away, there's no better time to use it. Register to vote.