Outgoing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell fell over during a Senate lunch on Tuesday.
McConnell, 82, is the outgoing leader of the Senate Republicans and has been battling a string of health issues over the last few years including multiple falls.
Medical staff with a wheelchair were called in to assist after the senator fell during the lunch. He also has a cut on his face according to reports.
Sen. John Barrasso, the incoming whip, told DailyMail.com that McConnell ‘is fine.’
McConnell suffered several health scares following a fall last year leading to bizarre ‘freezing episodes’ that sparked concerns.
McConnell was the longest-serving GOP leader in Senate history with a roughly 18-year tenure.
But his yearslong feud with Trump put him at odds with many in the GOP who wanted a MAGA leader going into the president-elect’s second term.
Earlier this year, he shocked colleagues by announcing he would be stepping down from the leadership role.
Outgoing Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell fell over during a Senate lunch on Tuesday
Earlier this yea, McConnell shocked colleagues by announcing he would be stepping down from the leadership role
McConnell fell multiple times in the weeks before he froze for 20 seconds at the Capitol in July 2023 and had to be helped by his colleagues.
He had ‘faceplanted’ when getting off a plane at Washington’s Reagan Airport, which sparked a series of incidents raising concerns about his health.
McConnell joked about his worrying pause and insisted he was ‘fine,’ but his office had not confirmed what caused the episode.
In addition to the plane incident, McConnell fell two other times in 2023, one of which resulted in a concussion.
There was also widespread speculation over whether he has been neurologically impacted by the spills.
When announcing his plans to step down from leadership, he said it has been a ‘particularly difficult’ period for his family after his sister-in-law Angela Chao drowned on her Texas property in February.
‘I turned 82 last week, the end of my contributions are closer than I would prefer,’ he continued on the floor.
‘If you would have told me 40 years later that I would stand before you as the longest serving senate leader in American history, franky I would have told you, you lost your mind,’ a very emotional McConnell said in a lighthearted moment.
The Minority Leader, a survivor of polio, made light of the recent health scare on Wednesday, saying he told President Joe Biden that he too had been ‘sandbagged’ after freezing mid-sentence.
Last month, Sen. John Thune, 63, was elected to replace McConnell and usher in Donald Trump‘s ambitious agenda with a new GOP majority.
Joining Thune, South Dakota, in leadership are Assistant Majority Leader: John Barrasso, Wyoming, Conference Chair Tom Cotton, Arkansas, Policy Committee Chair Shelly Moore Capito, West Virginia, and Conference Vice Chair: James Lankford, Oklahoma.
Reports indicate that McConnell has fallen at least three times this year – and other questions regarding his neurological state are rising after he froze during his press conference
Last month, Sen. John Thune, 63, was elected to replace McConnell and usher in Donald Trump ‘s ambitious agenda with a new GOP majority
The incoming National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) chairman is Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, who will be tasked with leading Republicans in the 2026 midterm elections.
Thune and Trump have had a complicated relationship over the years and many in the president-elect’s orbit didn’t want him in charge of the MAGA agenda.
He called on Trump to exit the 2016 presidential race after the infamous Access Hollywood tape was leaked and was critical of his alleged attempts to overturn the 2020 election results.
But in recent months, Thune has made his support for Trump known including by becoming one of the first to endorse him during the primary and the two have a better relationship. They reportedly talked on the phone after his victory Wednesday.
Their communication will be critical as Thune will be tasked with leading all of Trump’s Cabinet picks through the Senate confirmation process.
