A report shows that after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell froze up at a news conference again last week, Sen. Mike Rounds declared that McConnell is absolutely capable of performing his job.
McConnell, R-Kentucky, reportedly told Rounds that his doctor, Dr. Brian Monahan, had advised him that he would sometimes feel dizzy due to his concussion earlier this year.
At a news conference in Kentucky last Wednesday, a reporter asked McConnell whether he intended to run for reelection in 2026, and he became unresponsive for about 30 seconds before being able to speak. In July, he had an identical incident during a news conference at the Capitol.
The freezing episodes have raised questions about the future and health of McConnell, the 81-year-old Senate party leader with the longest tenure.
But, according to Rounds, McConnell said that he had no problem with McConnell continuing to serve as the party’s leader.
Rep. Rand Paul of Kentucky (R) questioned the medical advice of Capitol Hill attending physician Brian Monahan after he gave the Senate Minority Leader the green light to return to work after a second high-profile freeze. Monahan called it a case of dehydration.
Paul, an ophthalmologist, disagreed with Monahan’s claims and explained that when you become dehydrated, your eyes don’t become fixated in a blank expression and effectively become unconscious with your eyes wide open. That’s not a sign of dehydration.
The physician said an electroencephalogram (EEG) ruled out a seizure condition. Seizures may still occur despite an otherwise normal EEG. Twenty-five percent of persons with brain injuries have seizures following their injury.
Do negative results from an electroencephalogram (EEG) rule out seizure disorder? You obviously didn’t discover anything if he didn’t have a seizure during the exam. Paul then said that the issue here is that dismissing someone’s possible seizure issue based on a normal EEG is an error in medical judgment.
Reports show that despite mounting calls for his resignation after a series of unsettling on-camera lapses, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged to continue leading the Republican caucus.
According to statements made to the press, the Kentucky senator plans to serve the remainder of his current term in the Senate.
