Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear (D) is raising fresh questions about Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell’s (R) health and prolonged absence from the Senate, saying he has received no update directly from the longtime Republican lawmaker.
Beshear said Sunday that he has “heard absolutely nothing” from McConnell, 84, as the senator continues recovering at his Washington, DC, home following a June hospitalization.
McConnell last participated in an in-person Senate roll call vote on June 11, three days before he was hospitalized after falling at his Capitol Hill residence.
“I’ve heard absolutely nothing back from Mitch McConnell,” Beshear told CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”
The Democratic governor stressed that he wished McConnell well but argued that Kentucky voters deserve to hear directly from their senator.
“And while I do hope that he is getting better — I’ve known him my entire life, I wish him no harm, I actually wish him good health — his boss are the people of Kentucky, and this is why the Republican-controlled Senate feels so broken,” Beshear said.
“They feel like they’re not accountable to anyone,” he continued. “All he needs to do is call into this show for two minutes, or Fox News for two minutes, or do a video for two minutes.”
McConnell was discharged from the hospital on Aug. 6 and has been recovering at home while undergoing physical therapy.
His office has released photographs showing the Kentucky Republican smiling during his recovery, but McConnell has not made an in-person return to the Senate since his hospitalization.
Questions about his condition intensified after dispatcher audio indicated first responders initially believed McConnell might have suffered some form of cardiac event.
McConnell subsequently issued a statement through his team denying that he had suffered a heart attack or stroke.
“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 last month.
Earlier this month, McConnell’s office released another statement saying he planned to continue an “intensive regimen” of physical therapy during the Senate’s August recess.
“On the advice of my doctors, I’ll maintain an intensive regimen of physical therapy from home during the state work period, and I’ll continue to engage with my staff and colleagues on important Senate business,” he said.
The Senate is currently in the middle of a five-week recess and is scheduled to return to Washington on Sept. 14, per the New York Post.
McConnell’s current term expires in January, bringing an end to more than four decades in the Senate.
He was first elected in 1984 and eventually became one of the most powerful Republicans in Washington. McConnell led the Senate Republican conference from 2007 until 2025, becoming the longest-serving Senate party leader in US history.
