Mitch McConnell Medically Cleared To Work By Capitol Attending Physician | EUROtoday

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has been medically cleared to renew his duties by the U.S. Capitol attending doctor after his alarming freeze-up at an occasion in Kentucky this week.

Brian Monahan, the attending doctor, stated he knowledgeable McConnell that he’s “medically clear to continue with his schedule as planned” after consulting with the GOP chief and his neurology workforce.

“Occasional lightheadedness is not uncommon in concussion recovery and can also be expected as a result of dehydration,” Monahan added in a press release launched by McConnell’s workplace on Thursday.

At a information convention Wednesday, McConnell, 81, didn’t reply for about 30 seconds after he was requested about operating for reelection in 2026, prompting aides to hurry to his facet. It’s the second alarming episode the senator has had previously 5 weeks. McConnell’s aides stated he “felt momentarily lightheaded” throughout the newest freeze-up.

McConnell was hospitalized for a concussion and damaged ribs after falling earlier this yr. The longtime Kentucky Republican senator is a polio survivor.

President Joe Biden stated he spoke with McConnell on Thursday.

“He was his old self on the telephone. … It’s not at all unusual to have the response that sometimes happens to Mitch when you’ve had a severe concussion,” Biden stated whereas at a Federal Emergency Management Agency occasion in Washington.

The efforts by McConnell’s workforce and his allies to tamp down hypothesis in regards to the senator’s well being aren’t more likely to quell swirling questions on his future as a celebration chief. Several GOP senators are weighing requires a caucus assembly to debate their occasion’s management as soon as the Senate returns from its August recess subsequent week, based on Politico. And Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) even steered McConnell ought to step down, calling him and different older politicians “not fit for office.”

Still, one outstanding McConnell detractor isn’t pushing for his ouster this time. Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), who led a failed effort to oust McConnell as chief earlier this yr, stated he didn’t see McConnell going wherever anytime quickly.

“I expect he’ll continue to be the Republican leader through this term,” Scott instructed CBS News on Wednesday. “We’ll have another election after the 2024 elections.”