Shades of the Reagan Era, when Ronnie was feeding the squirrels and Nancy was consulting with her astrologer while Reagan’s aides ran the government as he began to surrender more to Alzheimers. At least in that situation we saw and heard Reagan, in this situation with Mitch McConnell, all we know is that he had a heart attack on June 14 and since then it’s been radio silence. The people of Kentucky and the American people have a right to know what’s going on.
His staff keeps putting out the same canned statement. McConnell’s office says he appreciates the support and that he’s continuing treatment. But there are still no details on his condition or an expected date he’ll get back to his Senate duties.
That silence has created a void, and MAGA is rushing to fill it. Far-right influencer Laura Loomer cited anonymous sources to claim that the Kentucky senator is “braindead.” Independent journalist Desirée Townsend says she’s heard similar things from her own sources and is now camped outside McConnell’s hospital waiting for word from his family on whether he’ll be taken off life support.
Breitbart reporter Matthew Boyle is publicly demanding McConnell’s staff provide Republicans with proof of life. Pro-Trump commentator Catturd, who has millions of followers on X, is asking for a video from McConnell’s hospital room.
Observers are also questioning why McConnell’s wife, former Labor Secretary Elaine Chao, reportedly went to Beijing just three days after McConnell was hospitalized to meet with China’s vice president. There’s still no word on the details of that trip.
Former Trump White House chief strategist Steve Bannon suggested the senator’s team is hiding his condition specifically to avoid triggering a special election, which could allow ousted Republican congressman Thomas Massie to run as an independent. Under Kentucky law, if McConnell resigns or is deemed unable to serve before August 3, Governor Andy Beshear, a Democrat, could call for a special election. After that date, any replacement would just be decided in November’s general election.
Utah Republican Senator Mike Lee insists there isn’t a coordinated effort by Republicans to keep mum on McConnell’s health, saying that his GOP colleagues know as much about how the former Republican leader is doing as the rest of us. Current Senate Majority Leader John Thune said he spoke with McConnell shortly after he was hospitalized and that he sounded good, though Thune said he’s deferring to McConnell’s staff on when he’ll return to the Senate.
Sounds like a snow job and everybody is taking it like that. What can be the possible harm of admitting McConnell is unable to continue in his job? That happens to a lot of octogenarians. There’s no shame in it. As usual, the coverup is worse than the “crime.”
If they are hiding incapacity to serve out the term, wouldn’t that constitute fraud?
Technically, I don’t think so. The legal definition of “fraud” is tough to understand. What would likely be key to this situation would be if McConnell’s representatives were to describe McConnell’s condition and it later turned out to be a false statement.
But, as Wiki puts it:
In law, fraud is intentional deception to deprive a victim of a legal right or to gain from a victim unlawfully or unfairly. Fraud can violate civil law (e.g., a fraud victim may sue the fraud perpetrator to thwart the fraud or recover monetary compensation) or criminal law (e.g., a fraud perpetrator may be prosecuted and imprisoned by governmental authorities), or it may be an element of another civil or criminal wrong despite itself causing no loss of money, property, or legal right. The purpose of fraud may be monetary gain or other benefits, such as obtaining a passport, travel document, or driver’s licence. In cases of mortgage fraud, the perpetrator attempts to qualify for a mortgage by way of false statements.
The only people who could actually file a suit claiming “fraud” would be the citizens/voters of Kentucky but, most likely, they would have to prove that they were harmed or suffered harm but that would be a very tough hurdle to overcome. Senators miss votes all the time so the constituents can’t really say they’re suffering from a lack of representation; also, there’s no requirement for a senator to vote ‘yea” or “nay”–they have the option of voting “present” (which is neither “yea” or “nay”) or simply not vote at all. There’s also no such thing as a limit to the number of missed votes or not voting (that can, however, be an issue when it’s time for re-election as an opponent can point to the voting record–or lack of such–as a reason not to re-elect that person).