WASHINGTON — Sen. Mitch McConnell on Sunday broke his silence on his hospital stay with a statement issued by his office claiming he fell but didn’t suffer a stroke or heart attack — and it included a photo of the politician smiling for extra measure.
The 84-year-old Kentucky Republican, who was hospitalized June 14 during what dispatchers suspected was a cardiac event, released the statement the day after Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), 71, suddenly died of heart issues — and following weeks of relative radio silence from McConnell’s camp.
The Kentucky pol suffered “minor injuries” in his fall but then contracted pneumonia, which complicated his health situation, the statement said.
“My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion. I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages,” McConnell said in the statement.
“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.”
McConnell’s doctors attributed his fall to his post-polio condition. At the age of 2, he contracted polio, and since then, his upper left leg has suffered from paralysis.
The Office of the Attending Physician for the senator added, “Early in his hospitalization, he developed pneumonia, which responded rapidly to antibiotic treatment.
“The remainder of his hospital stay focused on physical therapy and strategies to reduce his risk of future falls. He has been medically cleared to continue fully participating in his intensive physical therapy program.”
The release included a photo of McConnell propped up in a hospital bed with his wife Elaine Chao by his side.
McConnell’s absence and the previous lack of a clear explanation from his team about it had sent the rumor mill into overdrive for weeks about his condition.
Key McConnell allies such as former aide Scott Jennings and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) tried to downplay the hoopla by saying they had spoken with him during his hospital stay, but their statements did little to quiet suspicious critics.
McConnell said in his statement Sunday that, much to his chagrin, his recovery process will take time, adding that “on the advice of my doctors, I won’t be able to return to the Senate floor to vote quite yet.
“But rest assured that, in the meantime, I’m not taking a break from the Senate business that matters to you,” he said. “I’ve been working closely with my legislative staff on current issues, and with my Kentucky team who help me provide timely constituent services across our Commonwealth.”
He said he has been able to move from hospital care to a rehabilitation center since the fall.
For the time being, because of his absence and the death of Graham, the GOP’s Senate majority will functionally be at 51-47 for the short-term. McConnell is the longest-serving Senate leader of any party in the upper chamber’s history.
He has suffered multiple health scares in the past. In 2023, for example, McConnell froze up several times mid-speech after suffering a concussion and minor rib fracture from a fall at a fundraiser at the Waldorf Astoria hotel in Washington, DC, earlier that year.
