United States: After being paralyzed in public, the leader of the Republican majority in the Senate will leave his post

Mitch McConnell82 years old and leader of the Republican majority in the United States Senate, announced Wednesday that he will leave his post in November 2024, when the presidential elections will be held and after some health episodes suffered in recent months, including two appearances before the press in which He was paralyzed for several seconds.

In March 2023 he was admitted to hospital with a concussion and had to receive assistance in front of the cameras after he lost the thread of his presentation and was left speechless and immobilized.

McConnell served as minority leader between 2007 and 2015, then held the influential majority until 2021, and has been minority leader again since then.

“One of the most underrated talents in life is knowing when it’s time to do it move on to the next chapter of life. So today I stand before you to tell you that this will be my last term as Republican leader of the Senate,” he announced in front of the Upper House.

McConnell he doesn’t have a good relationship with the former president of the United States and potential Republican candidate for the White House Donald Trump (2017-2021) and has been increasingly questioned within his party.

“Believe me, I know my party’s politics at this particular time. I have many flaws, but misunderstanding politics is not one of them,” he said.

More than half of the Senate Republican caucus already showed its support for Trump in party primaries, but McConnell wasn’t one of them.

In fact, in his speech, McConnell He didn’t mention Trump even once.but he had words of affection for former president Ronald Reagan (1981-1989), with whom he began his political career.

“When I got here I was happy if anyone remembered my name. President Reagan called me Mitch O’Donall. Almost, I thought. My wife, Elaine, and I got married on President Reagan’s birthday , on Feb. 6. “It’s probably not the most romantic thing to admit, but Reagan means a lot to both of us,” she said.

The veteran Republican politician, in the Senate since 1985, will step down as leader but will remain a senator until at least 2027, when his current term expires.

McConnell’s health worries American politics

In August 2023, after being paralyzed for the second time in a few days in front of the press and appearing visibly disoriented, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre shared US President Joe Biden’s wishes that McConnell, who president knows well for his reasons after their 24 years together in the Senate, he will recover soon.

“We clearly wish him the best and a speedy recovery. They work together and have known each other for a long time,” he said.

A month earlier, Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, a former orthopedic surgeon who is the third-ranking Republican in the Senate, expressed concern, despite showing improvement at the time.

In late August 2023, a reporter asked him about his plans to run for re-election. “What is my opinion on what?”, asked the legislator, a little bewildered, to repeat the question.

Later, after the journalist’s clarification, he managed to whisper: “Ah, of course.” He smiled and stood transfixed, staring blankly ahead, for about 30 seconds.

A maid had to intervene, putting her arm around his back and speaking softly to guide him. Two minutes later, the woman concluded the press conference.

Meanwhile, at the end of July, a similar episode occurred with McConnell. He approached the podium for his weekly press conference and began talking about the annual defense bill, which he said was moving forward with “good bipartisan cooperation.” But then he seemed to lose the thread and remained in an interminable “eh…”.

He remained in that position for 20 seconds and, at the suggestion of his colleagues, retreated to his office.