Sen. Mitch McConnell appeared to shut down during a press conference in the Capitol on Wednesday, falling into silence for about 20 seconds in the middle of a sentence until he was helped away. The minority leader was escorted back to his office by a colleague and finished the press conference later, the Washington Post reports. An aide said McConnell, 81, had felt lightheaded. When the senator returned, he told reporters, "I'm fine." McConnell was hospitalized with a concussion in March after taking a fall, then returned to the Senate in mid-April.
McConnell was making his opening remarks in the Republican leadership's weekly press conference when he froze, staring straight ahead. Sens. Jodi Ernst and John Barrasso asked him if he was OK, per the Hill. Putting a hand on McConnell's arm, Barrasso, a physician, asked him, "Anything else you want to say?" He then told McConnell, "Let's go back to your office" and walked him away from reporters. McConnell rejoined the press conference before his colleagues had finished and took questions, answering without difficulty. Asked if the episode was connected to his fall, McConnell said he was all right and able to do his job, per NPR.
Barrasso told reporters that he had walked with the leader to check on him and saw no reason for concern. "I just wanted to make sure everything was fine with him, and it was," Barrasso said, adding that McConnell "answered more questions than he normally does" during the press conference. McConnell, who's been in the Senate since 1985, is up for reelection in 2026; he hasn't said whether he'll seek an eighth term. (More Mitch McConnell stories.)
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