Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell appeared to freeze for about 30 seconds on Wednesday while speaking with reporters after a speech in Covington, Kentucky.
The incident is similar to an episode McConnell experienced at the US Capitol late last month and is likely to raise additional questions about the fitness of the 81-year-old to lead the Senate Republican caucus.
Wednesday’s episode occurred when a reporter asked the Republican leader if he was planning to run for reelection in 2026. McConnell had to ask him to repeat the question several times, chuckled for a moment, and then paused.
Someone at his side then asked him, “Did you hear the question, senator, running for reelection in 2026?” McConnell did not respond.
Article includes video of the incident.
I see a lot of hate towards him and it looks like he deserves it. But why is he still in the Senate? Do people vote for him?
I’m not an American, just trying to understand how it works.
All elections are local here. President/VP is the only office that the entire country votes on, and even that is really a weighted combination of the results of 50 different State elections (and DC). So the first part is that Mitch only has to answer to voters in his home state of Kentucky.
But then Mitch’s leadership position isn’t even due to that, but due to how long he has been there and how many favors he has done for Republicans there. He was elected as the Senate Republican leader strictly by Senate Republicans. But that position puts him in a much better position to shape legislation the way he wants to, and every politician wants to direct Federal money back home.
So there is added incentive for Kentucky to keep sending him well past his “Best Before” date, because they lose all that influence if they send someone else instead.
And Senate elections are also for six year terms. A lot can happen to an elderly person in six years. He didn’t show these symptoms when he won his last election.
yes. incumbents have a lot of staying power in elections just because they are the incumbent. there’s also a giant coordinated rightwing media propaganda machine that has been driving hatred into the hearts of vulnerable Americans for the past 60 years telling them to vote R no matter what. even if it hurts them.
Also specifically for Kentucky, Kentucky outside of Louisville and Lexington has had little to no growth and instead has been in decline*. Republicans and centrist Democrats(in the case of who ran against McConnell, Amy McGrath) are the only ones who claim to bring jobs back. A lot of rural Kentuckians felt especially alienated by what many saw as a condescending response from who they saw as the Democratic establishment telling them to “Learn to Code”. A lot of Kentucky voting is really about jobs rather than ideological issues, you saw the same with the election of Governor Andy Beshear(a Democrat) where he promised to fund the teacher pension where his incumbent opponent Matt Bevin didn’t really promise much in terms of economic opportunity. Back to McConnell, McGrath could’ve had a chance against him but I think also people saw the notoriety and power McConnell has in the party as him being uniquely positioned to negotiate more for the benefit of Kentucky.
This is a very good appraisal of the situation, however (not that you’re wrong), I wish I could ask these people how long they plan to keep reelecting the same person before they stop hoping he will fix their problems and start realizing he’s a big part of the reason they’re still problems.
Like…c’mon Kentucky. At what point do you go from, “We’ve had enough of this. Let’s vote in Republicans to bring us prosperity!” and eventually get to, “Damn, we’ve been reelecting these people for how long now? It’s been long enough. These problems haven’t gone anywhere, so either these people are incapable of solving them or are actively perpetuating them. Either way, time for someone new.”
That requires critical thinking, something conservatives are critical of. 😂
I’m from Louisville so I can’t speak for the whole state, but my interpretation is that Trump was the first presidential candidate in a long time to mobilize Kentuckians into thinking the issues of the state will be addressed nationally, again McGrath and other Democratic candidates recognized that and didn’t directly attacked Trump(IIRC Andy Beshear has also never really said anything against Trump). None of the Trump supporters I know care for McConnell at all(and they likely wouldn’t mind McGrath that much) but voted for McConnell as hoping it helps Trump’s goals basically, rather than a vote for McConnell.
That doesn’t explain the votes for him from 1984-2010
I can’t really offer a perspective on that because I wasn’t alive for half those years.
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Kentucky voters have historically LOVED him. Until recently that state has voted consistently for Republicans for a while, and McConnell is the most powerful Republican in the US. He is vastly responsible for the horrible shape our government is in right now.
It is not true to say the state has voted consistently Republican, it has leaned Republican in the past 20 years but there have been a few Democratic congressmen(and some areas like Louisville are essentially always blue) and the governor is more often than not a Democrat.
That is true. NKY is also a very blue area.