For the second time in weeks, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., appeared to have frozen during a press conference Wednesday. The incident happened in Covington, Kentucky, where McConnell was unable to respond to questions from reporters after he suddenly stopped speaking and needed help from the folks around him.
When asked about running for reelection, the senator froze in place and didnβt speak for nearly 30 seconds. McConnell also didnβt answer when a member of his own staff asked if he had heard the question. βAll right, Iβm sorry, you all. Weβre going to need a minute,β the aide said during that awkward moment.
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Mitch, take as many minutes as you need. Just take them at home, away from us, where your obstruction and enabling of anti-black policies canβt hurt us anymore. To be clear, whateverβs going on with McConnellβs health isnβt the business of Black America. It doesnβt take much to have compassion for an elderly man whoβs clearly and publicly in decline. Itβs just that as far as many Black folks are concerned, McConnellβs retirement day just canβt come fast enough.
McConnell has served as the GOP leader for 16 years, the longest in the history of the Senate. During his tenure, he has gone out of his way to disenfranchise Black people by opposing police reform, health care reform and almost any legislative change Black folks have favored.
At the helm of the Senate GOP, McConnell refused to confront or vote to convict Trump in either impeachment. Heβs also served as a mentor to Daniel Cameron, the Black attorney general who refused to charge the cops who killed Breonna Taylor. McConnell also blocked President Obamaβs effort to appoint a justice late in his term but allowed Donald Trump to do so.
McConnell has consistently stated he plans on finishing up his job, which doesnβt end until the end of 2024 as the 118th Congress comes to a conclusion. In March, he fell and suffered a concussionβan injury that could account for his recent concerning moments. A similar episode happened on July 26 in Washington, D.C., where he didnβt move and was temporarily unable to talk during a news conference.
McConnell has managed to avoid the question if he will run again, though that possibility should be null and void since he obviously cannot do the job now. While itβs jarring to see the 81-year-old Senate leader struggle behind podiums, for Black folksβwho McConnell infamously referred to as being different from Americansβitβd be optimal if he retires sooner than later.
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