The 81-year-old Kentuckian was examined by a group of neurologists after two recent health scares in front of TV cameras, and Brian Monahan, the attending physician at the Capitol, said in a new letter that there is no evidence that Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell has a seizure disorder – or that he had a stroke – or a movement disorder like Parkinson’s disease.
The new letter, which was made public by McConnell’s office on Tuesday, was sent after he froze in front of cameras twice in as many months, raising concerns about McConnell’s ability to maintain his influential leadership role within the Senate GOP Conference. McConnell was examined by four neurologists after he experienced a seizure last week in Covington, Kentucky, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
In the letter dated Tuesday, Monahan claimed to have spoken with McConnell’s neurologists and performed a number of tests, including an electrical imaging examination of the brain and a brain MRI.
The letter stated, “There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder, that you have had a stroke, TIA, or a movement disorder like Parkinson’s disease.”
An EEG study provides a snapshot in time, according to CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta on “Anderson Cooper 360” on Tuesday.
“Someone could have a seizure, then a normal EEG, and have another seizure later,” Gupta said, pointing out that the examinations McConnell underwent were quite thorough and significant.
“They can provide you with a decent amount of information, but they can’t rule out seizures with absolute certainty. Once more, they can only provide you with a moment in time, the speaker added.
A casual mention of McConnell’s freezing incident was made when he said, “One particular incident of my time back home has drawn its fair share of attention from the press during the past week.”
However, I can guarantee you that August was a busy and effective month for me and my team back in the Commonwealth, he said during floor remarks on Tuesday. During the break, McConnell spoke about the activities he attended, pausing briefly to get a drink of water.
As they left their weekly meeting on Tuesday night, members of the Senate GOP leadership cast doubt on McConnell’s wellbeing.
According to Texas Senator John Cornyn, who spoke to CNN, McConnell is scheduled to discuss his health on Wednesday during a closed-door session with Republican senators.
Regarding McConnell’s speech to the conference on Wednesday during lunch, Cornyn remarked, “I think he understands. He recognizes, in my opinion, that transparency is his friend and helps to dispel a lot of rumors.
The two frozen seconds were attributed by the Republican leader’s office to “lightheadedness,” and Monahan said in a previous letter that feeling lightheaded is “not uncommon” for concussion victims. After collapsing at a hotel in Washington and injuring his head, McConnell sustained a concussion and broken ribs, which prevented him from working in the Senate for over six weeks.
The memo is released on the same day that the Senate convenes again after a five-week break. GOP senators are certain to be questioned about whether they think the Republican leader can continue to lead his conference as he has for the past 16 years, which is the longest tenure of any party leader in Senate history. Although McConnell is anticipated to serve as leader through the remainder of this Congress, there are mounting doubts about whether he will do so during the subsequent Congress, which convenes in 2025.
Republican Senator Susan Collins stated that she spoke with McConnell the day following the most recent freezing episode and believes he is “fully prepared” to do his task.
The Maine Republican responded when asked if she worried about McConnell’s health, “I do not.” “I spoke with Leader McConnell the next day. He made a good sound. We discussed the start of business this week, and I believe he is ready and competent to perform his obligations.
Even if McConnell takes a daily 20-second “checkout,” according to Republican Senator Mitt Romney of Utah, he is still performing “pretty darn well” the rest of the time.
The truth is that, while we may anticipate Mitch McConnell to check out for 20 seconds each day, he actually works quite hard for the other 86,380 of the day.
However, not all GOP senators agreed with McConnell’s justification. Sen. Rand Paul, a fellow Republican from Kentucky, described the dehydration diagnosis as an “inadequate explanation” and asserted that, in his opinion, based on his 25 years of medical training, “it doesn’t look like dehydration.”
Sen. Tommy Tuberville of Alabama expressed fear that McConnell might not be able to do his duties in an interview with CNN, claiming that McConnell has not fully recovered from his concussion from earlier this year.
Tuberville expressed his desire for McConnell to continue serving as leader but stated that he must speak with the Kentucky Republican at the entire conference meeting on Wednesday.
The leader will need to stay on top of a lot of things. And is he capable of doing it? It’s kind of like playing quarterback, I guess. The former Auburn University football coach expressed his hope that he could.
“In my profession, I’ve seen kids really struggle for a very long time after concussions,” Tuberville said. “For that reason, you don’t play them again. You can’t rejoin the game until you are fully recovered. And it is clear that he is not quite healthy.