The Daily BS • Bo Snerdley Cuts Through It!
The Daily BS • Bo Snerdley Cuts Through It!

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Mitch McConnell finally returns to the Capitol — but reporters were told not to film him

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BS BULLETIN:

  • Sen. Mitch McConnell returned to the Capitol Monday after a three-month absence following a serious fall.
  • McConnell spoke to reporters from a wheelchair and acknowledged he is still not “100%.”
  • Senate staff instructed journalists not to record video of his remarks, despite video often being permitted in that hallway.

Mitch McConnell is back in the United States Senate after three months away.

But there was something reporters weren’t allowed to do when the 84-year-old Kentucky Republican made his return:

Film him speaking.

McConnell appeared outside the Senate chamber Monday in a wheelchair, marking his first public appearance at the Capitol since a June fall at his Washington home left him hospitalized.

Before returning, McConnell acknowledged that his recovery has been difficult.

“My recovery has been a long and often frustrating process,” he said in a statement, adding that the lingering effects of childhood polio have made things more difficult.

McConnell said he is “still not quite back to 100%” and continues to undergo physical therapy.

When he arrived, McConnell briefly spoke to a crowd of journalists outside the Senate chamber.

He even joked about seeing them.

“After two decades of dodging your questions, I wasn’t sure how many of you would be here today,” McConnell said.

But the press restrictions surrounding that appearance quickly became a story of their own.

According to the Associated Press, reporters and photographers were instructed by Senate staff not to take video while McConnell delivered his remarks in the second-floor hallway.

That’s notable because video is frequently permitted in that location.

Still photographs were allowed.

The Wall Street Journal similarly reported that Senate officials did not allow McConnell’s remarks to be videotaped. The newspaper described his speech as difficult to understand at times.

Reuters reported that McConnell appeared frail and spoke in a voice that sometimes faltered.

McConnell told reporters it was “time to get back to work” and said he wanted to focus on the farm bill as well as his longtime support for NATO and Ukraine.

 

He did not take questions.

McConnell’s prolonged absence had fueled considerable speculation because he had made no public appearances since his hospitalization.

He eventually disclosed that he had briefly lost consciousness during the fall and was also treated for mild pneumonia. Doctors said evaluations found no fractures, stroke, tumor, hemorrhage or cardiac abnormalities.

McConnell says he intends to finish his Senate term, which ends in January.

Nothing quiets speculation about an 84-year-old senator’s health quite like telling a room full of reporters: Whatever you do, don’t turn on the video cameras.

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