Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said he’s returning to Congress Monday after a nearly six-week absence recovering from a concussion suffered in a fall.
His arrival will be met by rumors of an impending retirement.
A top McConnell aide told The Washington Times the Kentucky Republican “is not going anywhere,” and rejected reports in the media that suggest he’s stepping down.
The retirement claims are based on reporting that Mr. McConnell’s deputies, including Minority Whip John Thune, of South Dakota, are actively jockeying for support from fellow GOP lawmakers in anticipation of an election to pick a new party leader.
Several leadership aides told The Times that Mr. McConnell’s return will put the rumors in media reports to rest.
Mr. McConnell, 81, was hospitalized on March 9 after suffering a concussion from a fall at the Waldorf Astoria Washington D.C.
He was hospitalized for several days and then spent nearly two weeks in a rehab facility.
His political team last month said Mr. McConnell planned to come back to work after the Easter break, and on Thursday he announced plans to return to the Senate.
“I am looking forward to returning to the Senate on Monday,” Mr. McConnell tweeted. “We’ve got important business to tackle and big fights to win for Kentuckians and the American people.”
Mr. McConnell has been in GOP leadership since 2003 and the party leader in the Senate since 2007. He is the last of a foursome of leaders in both parties who have governed the Capitol for decades and well into their 70s and 80s.
Earlier this year, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, now 83, relinquished her role leading House Democrats for more than two decades. Her top deputy, Rep. Steny Hoyer, also 83, joined her in stepping aside.
Mr. McConnell’s longtime Democratic opponent in the Senate, the late Harry Reid of Nevada, retired in 2016 at age 76 after suffering significant facial injuries in an accident involving exercise equipment.
Mr. McConnell has also suffered his share of injuries. A polio survivor, he fractured his shoulder in a 2019 fall at his Kentucky home. In 2020, health rumors swirled when he showed up with significant discoloration on his hands.
Mr. McConnell has also battled fierce criticism from former President Donald Trump and some top media conservatives who want him replaced with a conservative who will more aggressively battle Democrats.
After Republicans failed to recapture the Senate in November, Mr. McConnell faced a leadership challenge by a conservative faction in the GOP conference, but handily won a closed-door reelection.
Mr. McConnell swatted down retirement talk at that time as well.
“I’m not going anywhere,” he told reporters in November after defeating a challenge from Sen. Rick Scott of Florida.
• Susan Ferrechio can be reached at sferrechio@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.