Back in March of this year, Senate Minority Leader “Moscow” Mitch McConnell had a “fall” at a “hotel” in Washington. No one really nailed down the circumstances of the fall, and to this day, I’ve never heard the names of anyone with McConnell when he fell or the circumstances of the fall. Did we even learn why he was in a hotel in the first place? No, I don’t think we did. Everything about the “fall” was hushed up, and Moscow Mitch was not seen or heard from for weeks afterwards. At first, he was recuperating at home, and then they said he was doing in-patient physical rehab. Moscow Mitch returned to the Senate in April/May and I guess I wasn’t paying attention. This man looks like ten kinds of hell, but he’d had that sickly look for a while, honestly. Well, Moscow Mitch was trying to do his weekly press conference on Wednesday and the man just froze in front of the cameras:
First of all, before he froze, he already sounded and looked like he was recovering from a stroke. As for the deep freeze… experts are saying it could have been a stroke or a seizure. I’ve watched the video a few times already – look at the Republican senators behind him. Senator Thune was the one who took over the press conference after Sen. Barrasso escorted Mitch away from the podium. About twelve minutes after McConnell was escorted away, he came back and spoke off-the-cuff to some reporters, telling them that he’s “fine” and he just “felt light-headed.”
The cable news networks had some doctors on air to consult and they were all like “yeah, he should see a doctor, he should go to a hospital.” If the Republican Party is fine with having cold, clammy, half-dead Mitch McConnell out there, so be it. Instead of worrying about that despicable old man’s health, think about all of the disgusting things he’s done with his power: shoved a sexual predator and a Quiverfull dipsh-t princess onto the Supreme Court; expressed his desire for a national abortion ban; used his office to try to make Barack Obama a one-term president; does everything to cut and end Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid; never supported equal pay; pledged absolute fealty to Donald Trump and on and on. Let this motherf–ker rot.
Photos courtesy of Cover Images.
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- United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican of Kentucky) speaks to the media following the weekly Senate policy luncheon. McConnell stopped speaking in the middle of his opening remarks and was escorted away from the podium before returning to answer questions and saying, “I’m Fine” in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Featuring: Senator Mitch McConnell Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 26 Jul 2023 Credit: CNP/startraksphoto.com
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- United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican of Kentucky) speaks to the media following the weekly Senate policy luncheon. McConnell stopped speaking in the middle of his opening remarks and was escorted away from the podium before returning to answer questions and saying, “I’m Fine” in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Featuring: Senator Mitch McConnell Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 26 Jul 2023 Credit: CNP/startraksphoto.com
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- United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican of Kentucky) speaks to the media following the weekly Senate policy luncheon. McConnell stopped speaking in the middle of his opening remarks and was escorted away from the podium before returning to answer questions and saying, “I’m Fine” in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Featuring: Senator Mitch McConnell Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 26 Jul 2023 Credit: CNP/startraksphoto.com
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- United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican of Kentucky) speaks to the media following the weekly Senate policy luncheon. McConnell stopped speaking in the middle of his opening remarks and was escorted away from the podium before returning to answer questions and saying, “I’m Fine” in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Featuring: Senator Mitch McConnell Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 26 Jul 2023 Credit: CNP/startraksphoto.com
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- United States Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Republican of Kentucky) speaks to the media following the weekly Senate policy luncheon. McConnell stopped speaking in the middle of his opening remarks and was escorted away from the podium before returning to answer questions and saying, “I’m Fine” in the US Capitol in Washington, D.C. Featuring: Senator Mitch McConnell Where: Washington, District of Columbia, United States When: 26 Jul 2023 Credit: CNP/startraksphoto.com
Where are the ‘too old’ comments now, Republicans?
Oh right, those were only used to distract the conversation from how well Biden is doing in some many ways. Biden is literally doing so many good things, but almost nobody is talking about it, because they’re either trying to distract from it or allow themselves to be distracted from it.
There are LOTS of Republicans who consider McConnell a Democrat in disguise (what a joke) and would LOVE to see him go down.
As much as I despise him, he challenges the Trumpers on some of their BS, and he is one of the few with a foothold who will. The enemy of my enemy and whatnot.
Just when you think that one is the worst there is always one worse coming up from behind.
So glad we have law makers of sound mind and body. RESIGN, BOOMERS.
This guy is even too old to be a Boomer!
Yeah, he’s 81. The oldest boomers are 77. Not every disgustingly racist misogynist is a boomer!
@ Brassy, thank you!!!
We are not at fault for everyone that isn’t changing or are keeping our heads in the sand about critical issues and the effects of Climate Change either.
Recently, I learned a word that describes this situation in a government: Gerontocracy. On both sides of the aisle, we see so many aged people holding the most powerful positions. A 1976 New York Times article used “gerontocracy” to critically describe the Soviet Union at that time: https://www.nytimes.com/1976/03/07/archives/soviet-gerontocracy.html But those Soviet leaders were in their 60’s and early 70’s! We’ve got them beat by a good decade. Time for some fresh faces.
Yeah, he’s not a boomer. Crazy as it seems, Obama is a boomer, he’s from the silent generation, lol. Boomers are from 1946 to 1964. Gen X starts in 1965, I believe.
I meant McConnell is from the silent generation. Obama is Boomer2, or generation Jones.
Do the world a favour and die 🤷♀️. Not sorry. Boy bye.
And the youngest boomers are 59. Stop with the generational generalities!!!! Dolly Parton is a boomer!! Too bad she’s from Tennessee instead of Kentucky, she could replace McConnell.
Dolly Parton is not a Boomer.
Dolly Parton is MAGIC 🧚🏽♀️🪄
Then she’s a magic boomer. She’s 77, born 1946, first year of the baby boom.
Dolly Parton defies all classification.
I’m so sick of this gross ageism. Plenty of older people are respected because they have wisdom from living longer than others.
Cultures that are highly functional respect their elder’s wisdom. Could we use more young people in government? Absolutely but no one else but Biden with his decades of experience could have dealt so well with the fascist attacks coming from the Right.
Now in McConnell’s case he is an evil man who has done a lot to destroy U.S. democracy. But that has nothing to do with his age.
Also what’s so weird is the “okay Boomer!” came from the Bernie crowd. Zero tracking there.
@ WiththeAmerican, Biden has shown that at his age, he can keep up with the matters as POTUS in a responsible, transparent and educated manner as well.
McConnel has been nothing but an embarrassment and a destructive power and influence in every aspect of how Congress functions and operates. McConnel doesn’t act in the best interests of his constituents NOR the country!! He has been a boil on democracy for decades!!
The “Ok, Boomer” thing is less about ageism and more about the attitudes broadly held by people in that birth cohort. Stuff like climate change denial, or constantly infantilizing millennials and Gen Z with ignorant comments about things like participation trophies and avocado toast. It also wasn’t started by “the Bernie crowd” – it pre-dates the whole Bernie Bros concept.
@frontporch
Bernie bros was coined in 2015.
“Ok Boomer” reached mass popularity and became a thing in 2019.
Specifically in terms of not tracking, I was referring to the viral video on “OK Boomer” by Bernie supporter Neekolul in 2020.
“Ok, Boomer” started on Reddit in 2009. It really doesn’t have anything to do with Bernie beyond the fact that Bernie is popular with young folks and “Ok, Boomer” is *also* a popular thing for young folks to say.
Young boomer here (just turned 61). I have always related to Gen X way more than boomers.
WE DIDN’T START THE FIRE!
Oh, and they have the nerve to spout off about Joe Biden being too old or impaired to hold the office of POTUS. Maybe they should look at their own party. I live in Illinois right across the river from the state that I now refer to as “the wild west” (Iowa) – don’t get me started on Chuck Grassley!
Same, sis! I have nothing in common with the boomers and no one knows who Generation Jones is. LOL! I claim Gen X because I have more in common with them than the Boomers. I don’t share Boomer life experiences with American historical happenings.
I’m a 61 yo boomer – stop bashing!
I am also a boomer, and I’m about as liberal as they come! I don’t deny climate change, and while I’m not a huge fan of avocados, I’m not going to deny anyone their toast. So, enough with the generalizations, please! We’re all different! 🙂
Well, if we’re going to be justifiably vicious about this, OK: I hope it f–king hurts.
@Miranda: You made me laugh, actually. But I fear that turtles live a long time.
What a stupid day. We lose trail blazing feminist Sinead O’ Connor and this guy still lives another day. It’s backwards.
Don’t be absurd, turtles are more streamlined and have more saturated coloration. The man is as lumpy and dusty as the average tortoise, obviously.
Sadly, tortoises tend to have significantly longer lifespans than turtles.
Along with Dianne Feinstein, he’s yet another example of someone who clearly needs to retire from congress. It’s insane to me that congress is still full of old white men well over the retirement age who are making decisions that the younger generations will have to deal with for the rest of our lives while they die off in the next few years. Nothing will change though because that’s where all of the power is concentrated so they will roll their old bones up to the capital until the day they die. And because they made sure that they all have the best healthcare in the country they will last much longer than your average citizen.
THIS. Everyone jumped all over me for using Boomer as an insult in my above comment, but I stand by what I said. Older people who will not have to deal with their decisions are shaping the world for the next 50-100 years. We need younger people in charge who will have to cope with climate change, the ramifications of no social security, etc. etc. etc. These older people more and more are NOT making choices that benefit their children or grandchildren. We need term limits AND age limits.
I think it’s easy to say boomers but it’s probably more accurate to look at classes instead. Look at how much money congress members have. They aren’t working for you and me. They are working for the people funding them. The ultra wealthy finders have no moral compass (they think they do but they don’t). They don’t feel that they owe this country a dime for where they are. Half of them identify as Christian nationalists so they back people who follow their twisted ideologies (women should stay home, stay silent and have babies; gay and trans people should stay in the closet; Blacks should know their place in society). The other half don’t care about anything impacting the rest of us because they can buy their way out of issues. They spend “their” money (AKA uncollected taxes) on rocket ships, yachts, houses and other selfish ventures.
For context, if Dianne Feinstein gives up her spot as ranking Dem on Judiciary Committee, all the judges Biden is trying to get through to counterbalance the juggernaut of right wing lunatics Grim Reaper McConnell jammed through comes to a halt. Or so I’ve read.
DiFi missing all those votes is hampering the ability to get judges in tho. Shehas been forgetful for years, and now looks like she can barely walk. People criticize Pelosi for her age too, but she does the job.
I saw the video, and it’s creepy. McConnell clearly had some sort of brain event on live tv. If he really fell, he could be concussed. Or it could be a series of strokes. Who knows, who cares. He needs to go before he does any more damage.
I watched the clip last night and it was crazy. His fall and the silence over it is crazy too. After that fall, he went silent. I kept telling people that and now this.
The comments on social media about him and his health were vicious but he earned his reputation all by himself. I said to my husband, how does he live with himself knowing how much he is hated by so many. One comment was: Let’s wish Mitch well and do the say for everyone who has suffered a stroke but could not receive medical help due to Mitch.
Oh yes, and Biden called to check on him. Biden may be old, but he is a decent human being.
He certainly did earn his reputation and he has done so much damage to our country in his Republican hate tour. I can’t stand the man, but that video made me sad. I’ve witnessed my mother having a TIA stroke and that’s what he looked like to me. But he’ll never step down because the Governor of Kentucky is a Democrat.
I agree he will never step down, his grasping power-hungry ego simply won’t let him, but the Kentucky legislature made it impossible for a governor to appoint a replacement that is from a different party from the person stepping down.
His face drooped on the left side right before he froze – a stroke symptom. “Light-headedness” is also a stroke symptom.
Stroke can happen at any age.
I have wanted MCConnell out of the Senate for a long time. He is an evil man who has done evil things but his evil is not due to his age. Much younger men like Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, & Charlie Kirk are just as bad if not worse.
Let’s not make this about age, boomers, or physical ability. Ageism is bigotry.
MCConnell is evil because he is evil; not because he is old or sick.
Thanks from a 74 year old boomer!
None of those men are in congress though and have the power to legislate. Yes a stroke can happen at any age but Mitch has had on going health issues and he’s 81 years old! If us normies who work regular jobs are expected to retire around 65 why isn’t that expected from people who are literally making life changing decisions for millions of people? Regular people also can’t disappear from their jobs for months at a time either. Why do we have different standards for people in govt? I agree that ageism is gross but these aren’t middle aged people working in some private business doing paper work.
Joe Biden is eighty. I just retired last year at 73. I think making these decisions on a case by case basis is best, but there should be some system for forcing obviously unfit legislators to retire. Neither Feinstein nor McConnell belongs in the Senate at this point.
Who do you think is going to step up and replace MCConnell? Men like Matt Walsh, who has testified in favor of multiple drag Queen bans and cessation of gender affirming care before several legislatures this year.
Those who are expected to retire at 65, should they retire? What if you still want to work? What is it about 65 that makes society say “OK well, it’s time you should think about leaving your job…”. We’re basing removing people from work on the basis on age, not capability? And we’re assuming that at 65 you may not be physically or mentally fit to do the job? There are plenty of people 65+ who are more than capable to continue working past retirement age, including those in government. McConnell should have stepped down years ago due to his poor job performance as a legislator, not because of his age. BTW, I hope this doesn’t come off as attacking your comment (I apologize if my post appears that way). That’s not my intent. Just offering my opinion-response to your post.
Nobody should be expecting anyone to retire at 65. Or any age. The majority of Supreme Court justices who voted for Roe v Wade in 1973 were “retirement age.”
I practice employment law. The vast majority of cases where I see wrongdoing are age discrimination. We are an ageist society
Yeah I agree with Erin. Kind of like how I feel that police officers, with the level of power they have and the trust the public puts in them, should be morally better than all of us–I *also* feel that people who have one of the most important jobs in our society, legislators, should be more mentally fit than most of us. The job is just too crucial to risk on someone who may not have the mental acuity to handle it. I realize that’s not always age-based and there are certainly exceptions but overall, I think younger is better.
@Mireille- no worries, I’m not saying that 65 is the end of your life and you need to retire, I’m not the one who decided on that age, I’m just using that because that’s the standard here in the US. If you don’t feel like you should and you still want to work that’s great and I’m happy for you but I am saying that there seems to be a different standard for us everyday people in society and those in congress, people who actually have control of millions of peoples lives. It seems like they are untouchable and they can do whatever they want for as long as they want as long as people are behind them propping them up and we aren’t allowed to question whether they are up for the job or not because then we are accused of ageism. Idk maybe I am am ageist when it comes to people in govt making decisions for us plebs. I’m talking about specific people (McConnell and Feinstein) in specific jobs not the general population and I don’t think it’s mean to question whether we should continue to let these people hold all of this power.
@lightpurple-I’ve gotta be honest, I don’t see any of those men running for any govt office because they make far too much money doing what they are doing now. They are backed by billionaires who know that they have influence over a lot of Americans and that’s what they are paid for. Those same billionaires and other people in power have different people that they will have and back running for office that are more palatable to the general population. Matt Walsh, Ben Shapiro, and Charlie Kirk have a specific job that they are doing very well and they will continue to do so. Don’t get me wrong, it’s scary and we are definitely getting closer and closer to fascism but I look at DeSantis and his culture wars platform he’s running on and it’s not working.
Ageism is bigotry, yes. It also is true that the concerns and perspective of seniors are different from those of children, young adults, and those in middle age. People see the world differently when most of their life is behind them vs before. Depending on one’s age, a politician makes laws and wages wars that will have consequences for the future—a future that may, or may not affect them directly. I am all for wise elders. There’s no substitute for the wisdom of experience. There also is no substitute for having skin in the game. Something to think about.
“Skin in the game”—yep, that part.
Yeah but – people like Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi and Elizabeth Warren are old but highly functional and they govern like they do have skin in the game. The old trolls in the GOP? Not so much. It’s not an age thing.
And the GOP has said that if Feinstein – whose politics I agree with but whose decline is also clear – retires, they won’t allow a Democrat to fill her place on her committees. That’s the kind of crap that keeps people in office past when they would leave.
“The concerns and perspectives of seniors are different” YES! This is so important. And the Boomer categorization is relevant here because (white) Boomers grew up in a uniquely prosperous time. College was cheap. Housing was cheap. You could get a job by “pounding the pavement.” Those jobs usually provided a living wage and retirement benefits. The economy was relatively stable because of Depression-era guardrails in place. Credit ratings didn’t exist or barely even existed, depending on where in the Boomer generation you fall. The Boomers, as a voting block, supported Ronald Reagan, whose policies negatively affect Millennials to this day. For example, deregulation of student loan providers, which has largely driven the student debt crisis. Life looks different for Millennials specifically because of decisions Boomers made when they first came to power. My frustration with the Boomer generation is based around the fact that they are governing for a world that doesn’t exist and refuse to listen when people tell them that. Again, this is primarily in reference to white Boomers because BOC faced additional hurdles.
Not to mention that Boomers refusing to leave jobs has made it ridiculously hard for Millennials and older Gen Zs to find entry-level jobs because there isn’t the workforce rotation that there was when Boomers came of age. Add in the constant infantilization in the way largely Boomer-controlled media (and a lot of Boomer individuals) speak to and about Millennials/Zs, it seems like the concern isn’t really ageism, but being concerned about losing power.
A lot of the people listed above (Sanders, Warren, etc.) are popular with young people because they are speaking to issues that are relevant to young people. They are far and away the exception, not the rule.
@Another Anna- YES! The white boomer generation as a whole has lived a very charmed life and they have been pulling the ladder up behind them ever since they got into power. There is a reason why you have all of these memes about them saying shit like, “Well in my day I worked and paid for my own college.”, “Climate is cyclical.”. This generation has been catered too and they won’t admit that things have changed because they have taken away everything that gave them those opportunities. I look at my parents and think, no wonder you have no empathy for my position. My parents didn’t come from any money, my dad went to trade school, my mom had a high school degree but they both worked my entire childhood because childcare didn’t cost a literal years salary, my dad got well paying jobs, we lived in middle class comfort and took vacations and went out to eat often. They owned two houses that I grew up in and we always had two nice vehicles. They lived the American dream right and they think that’s still possible if you “work hard and show initiative” not taking into account any of the economic systems that have changed.
@AnotherAnna–so well-said.
Well said! We need representation from all generations. People who are intellectually strong. We need term limits. No one should be able to be a senator or representative for decades! And don’t get me started on the boomer hate. Why can’t all the generations get along? Ageism is an epidemic in this country and is fueled by blaming wide swaths of people (boomers) for our problems. Every single problem we have in this country is complex and complicated and the solutions need to be too. So don’t blame the “boomers”, blame the individuals, if you need to play the blame game. And work on solutions, don’t just complain. Run for office. Rally your community. Get the vote out in your demographic! We need and want to hear from young people. We need the wisdom of elders. We need both. But we don’t need to prop up people like Difi and Moscow Mitch!
Thanks and well said Lighpurple! It’s so disheartening to see ageism is still an acceptable form of derision and discrimination.
I am honestly not trying to be funny here, but how can you tell that his face drooped? I have been trying to look frame by frame and can’t tell a thing.
His face was droopy to begin with but right before he starts to speak the area around the left side of his mouth, slides down even more.
When he starts speaking, it’s pretty clear that he’s talking out of one side of his mouth. One side is moving, the other is drooping.
You can also see that his lips go purple and it looks like he’s fighting not to roll his eyes back. I’m no doctor and I don’t now what specifically happened, but something definitely happened.
One of my friend’s cousin who is a nurse mentioned that he may have symptoms pointing towards having an ischemic stroke:
An ischemic stroke is a life-threatening medical condition that happens when there’s a lack of blood flow to a part of your brain. These usually happen because of blood clots, but they can also happen for other reasons. Ischemia (pronounced “iss-key-me-uh”) is when cells in your body don’t have enough blood flow, which causes them to die.
Even prior to his fall which resulted in a concussion, myself and others noticed that there was something quite off about him–health-wise as well.
I had a couple of TIAs when I was pregnant in my early 20s and they were the scariest things I’ve experienced. You feel like you’re behind a mirror – your brain is screaming at you that there’s something wrong but you can’t communicate at all. My mom was with me during the first one and it took her several minutes to figure out something was happening because I completely froze and was just making sounds in the back of my throat like I was gagging. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if that’s what happened with McConnell.
I also assumed TIA. My grandmother had them somewhat frequently after a stroke. Simplest way to describe it is like she just zoned out for a minute or so, then snapped back, more or less.
As for retirement age and aging out, don’t pilots and some other fields have mandatory a retirement age because reaction times, etc slow? However Congress won’t even approve or enforce ethics legislation, no way they’d vote to mandate a retirement age.
The better option is term limits, which could also prevent some of the decades long cozy relationships between lobbyists, donors, etc. and would also open up more opportunities. But I think that would also have to happen at the federal level or a constitutional amendment, which also will never happen in my lifetime.
Part of the problem with narcissistic ego that makes one run for positions of power – you’re not going to be doing it for the greater good, bc it’s about ego.
And ego never wants to let go of power.
@ Lightpurple, yes 👏👏👏. And Moscow Mitch is creating the same type of behaviour from the younger Repugnants that are entering into politics today at EVERY level of government!! We see it in our states, cities as well as our other levels of government, ie immigration, education as well as the USPS.
Moscow Mitch has been a manipulative, arrogant, destructive, selfish, power hungry, vindictive, corrupt and incompetent member of Congress for DECADES!!! He needs to GO!!
They will continue to prop him up and drag him out. He should resign but no that doesn’t seem to be the plan.
I’m sorry but this comment made me cackle because my mind went straight to ‘Weekend at Bernie’s”
@Susan Collins, reminds me of the last year or so of QE2’s life. They dragged her out for their own reasons. (also knowing KFC wasn’t popular) At least, from my observations, QE2 employed the just smile when in doubt. McConnell didn’t do that. He froze for a long time. Decrepit, nasty old dude doesn’t have the wherewithal to fake it with a smile.
Yep, Weekend at Bernie’s.
Do Americans like Senator Thune ?
Nubia, This one does NOT!
Given his part in whipping the vote against even doing a hearing for Obama nominee Garland and his rabid support of accused r@pist Brett Kavanaugh when he was whipping that vote, no.
It’s pretty easy now to see who is a good person. Start with the letter before their state (R) is bad.
R = Fascist.
Go sit down you devil.
Hate that guy.
So Mitch went silent for a few minutes and people are *concerned*. Where was the concern when HR was silent for the four YEARS of trumps administration? I have zero empathy for this horrid creature. You reap what you sow.
This was tough to watch. As a fellow human, I can imagine it must have been terrifying to experience a medical event like that so publicly. Also, having observed Mitch’s choices over the course of his career, I can sleep easy knowing he’ll burn in hell soon enough.
I can’t stand this antiquated, power-hungry, smug, self-righteous hypocrite. I could care less about what happened to him at the podium — and I came here to say how much I care less about what happened to him at the podium. His political stance, his agenda has hurt Americans — I reserve my support and empathy for them. His party ridicules and disrespects my Biden — with McConnell egging on and supporting the Trump zealots. And everything he did to put down Obama and his agenda during his presidency? This man has pushed agendas and supported bills/laws that attack every segment of the population that is not white, male, rich, and religious. That includes military and veterans too — the one segment that is mainly pro-Republican. Seriously, f*ck this tool. Let me repeat that: f*ck this tool.
Mireille, I think I love you! Thank you for that post.
+1 and well said!
Right there with you Mireille
You are completely correct. He is in fact the son of the Devil. I said above that watching that video made me sad, but you’ve changed my mind.
Exactly, Mireille! He and his ilk made it their mission to circumvent every action that Presidents Obama and Biden did to benefit American citizens. I did not lose an ounce of sleep over his blanking out at that podium. I suppose that I will extend the same meaningless, blanket statement that members of his party says whenever someone experiences misfortune – “..thoughts and prayers”. *shrugs*
Sort of shocking to watch this evil turtle silenced by his evil turtle self. Karma that it happened in public.
Feed him a few meal-worms.
Looked like a stroke or TIA to me.
Kentucky’s governor, who is a Democrat, would appoint a replacement if MM were unable to complete his senate term. BUT, Kentucky has a law on the books that the governor would be required to appoint someone from the same party as MM, presented to him by that party’s state leadership.
Mitch was behind getting that law on the books in Kentucky.
I’m wondering if this was a TIA (Transient Ischemic Attack), the equivalent of a mini stroke. My grandmother had them and this is what it looked like. If he had a full blown stroke, I don’t think he would have been able to get back up and speak to the reporters later. He should see a doctor though and TIAs often are a precursor to an imminent full blown stroke. My grandmother never had a full blown one but as soon as he froze and blanked I figured it was that or a seizure.
It could also be a sign of Parkinson’s? But honestly whatever the cause (stroke, Parkinson’s, whatever) the MAIN POINT is that this guy is eighty-freakign-one years old, and once again I say: get rid of the gerontocracy! On both sides of the aisle! I don’t care your gender or your party affiliation, if you are over 70 politely and respectfully let go of the moneybags (salary, fringe benefits, shady stock holdings) that come with the job and GTFO. Make room for younger Americans to lead their country!
I wonder if it was a TIA.
I never thought I’d consider McConnell one of the good guys of the Republicans, but here we are. He was one of the only ones with enough of a sack to condemn some of the most reprehensible actions of the GOP lately. As much as I loathe him, he is still one of the better elected high profile Republicans these days, and we need him in the fight against fascism.
Not really, he actually started the power grab with refusing to confirm obamas SCOTUS nominee (Merrick Garland) for a YEAR due to some made up rule and then they ignored made up rule to push through all of Trump’s which is how Roe got overturned.
I have to disagree Janet. McConnell is evil and has caused so much damage to America.
Trust me, I f’in LOATHE this man. He is a disgusting little weasel.
But let’s be real. How many elected Republicans in Congress actually went on record to say the election wasn’t stolen? It wasn’t the people I expected.
I am deeply fearful of how much worse Kentucky can do than Mitch McConnell.
“Moscow Mitch returned to the Senate in April/May and I guess I wasn’t paying attention. This man looks like ten kinds of hell”
SAME, Kaiser. My bro sent me this video yesterday and I gasped at how terrible he looks. And yeah, I guess he has looked like this for a while and I just haven’t been paying attention, but he looks like the walking dead.
He’s been melting for years now but yeah, since the mysterious fall he had it’s obviously done a number on him. I was actually wondering why we hadn’t heard from him or seen him in a while since I keep up with politics pretty regularly and he was always front and center being the POS that he is. Now we know why.
Yeah his staff and his party have been hiding him away for a reason. I think his thinness is what struck me the most. I don’t remember him being so gaunt.
Don’t forget when his entire hand went black, Dumbledore style, last year. Something happened there.
Wait…his hand went BLACK?????? O_O
Holy crap, time still hasn’t recovered its meaning for me fully. That was 2020. ! But yes he developed one of those just under the skin bleeds that old people (and I think people with coagulation issues) develop after a needle stick. His entire right hand was deep purple.
The GOP is going to go full Weekend At Bernie’s soon.
Seriously though, how evil can you be to watch your coworker have a seizure & decide that the show must go on?! How no one took his hand to a seat, got water & called a doctor just shows their callousness towards any human being.
Wish for the sake of the US, ALL of them would freeze and never defrost
Thank you, Mary. Once again you deliver the comment of the day. 👏👏👏
The US salutes you!
@brassyrebel, thanks lovey lol, but I do worry about all my celebchy friends and for all Americans that are affected by these cockwombles. It’s asif they want a civil war in America, they want people who don’t fall down and worship at the alter of trump to suffer, the whole bloody world is going mad, including here in the UK.
I think about that too, @Mary, & wonder if they really do want a civil war, which my head couldn’t actually believe a few years ago. But war is what makes these men money & civil war would give them more power. The entire world was in pain during WWII, but the nazis were living the high life….for a while.
He could have had a sudden drop in blood pressure and it can cause this reaction. His HCP could be adjusting his meds and it dropped his BP too low. Since he came back as usual minutes later, I would bet this was it. It was terrifying to watch.
As much as I hate Mitch, it could be something as simple as dehydration. Something similar happened to my father, he just froze, and we all thought he had had a stroke or something serious. After 5 hours in the emergency room, it turns out he was REALLY dehydrated. That was the only thing they said was wrong with him after cat scans, blood test, chest xrays…etc.
He looked like he could barely stand when he got there, and then half of his face seemed to sort of freeze. I’m no medical expert so I don’t know what happened. But he is a garbage person and a destructive force to society, so I say the sooner he is put out of commission the better.
Well that explains the ramp up of “Biden is old!” stuff, because it’s always the GOP projecting.
Few people have done more damage to the country, and the world, than McConnell. All I’m going to say is I wish him the same level of compassion, care, and bodily autonomy that he extends to the rest of us.
It looked like he was shitting his pants unexpectedly.
LMAOOOOOO just gonna choose to believe this.
AHAHAHA! Damn, the GOP is really getting seasoned on adult diapers, incontinence & farting during speeches (Rudy’s melting hair, with the fart & side eye will never not be funny to me).
This reminds me of the scene from Dirty Rotten Scoundrels where Steve Martin has someone hold his triton.
Thanks for the laugh, I needed it.
I will never forget Mitch McConnell’s evil laughter when he was bragging about blocking president Obama’s judicial appointments. He needs to retire asap.
Thoughts and prayers.
A commenter on another site said, “Someone clearly destroyed one of his horcruxes” and I can’t stop laughing about it (and wishing I’d thought of it).
Hahaha I love the first comment . Where are the MAGAs who would say “he’s too old” . Those idiots just bit their own words. Just like Jason Aldean with his controversial song and mv – taking a look back a few years ago who’s the one that actually was cowardly and dropped his mic onstage and ran for his life at a Vegas concert when a gunman was shooting At concertgoers from a hotel room 🙄. The MAGAs/GOP are total hypocrites.
Going back to Mitch, he has been looking sickly for a while that he really should retire. Biden is old but at least he still looks like in good health, and one thing you notice with Biden he’s still stands up straight. Look at Trump he’s a few years younger than Biden but Trump hunches back when he walks and stands. The MAGAs don’t want to say that out loud either lol.
The federal government just raised the mandatory retirement age for commercial airline pilots from 65 to 67. It’s been quite a debate because it absolutely increases safety risks but there’s a severe shortage of pilots. Would you want to fly with an 81 year old at the controls? How about 89? Yet we have people that age legislating for the whole country? We need either mandatory retirement ages or we need annual fitness tests.
Receiving orders from the hive, I presume. The queen just timed it wrong.
And there’s Iowa’s useless Joanie Ernst next to him in the top photo in the bright pink suit!
There should be term limits on congress and the senate. It is not so much the age but the corruption that sets in after decades of re-election. And while some long term senators like Biden managed not to be bought by corporate interests, long term it would be better if the elected politicians knew they would be gone after 20 years or whatever. They would make better decisions because they wouldn’t be beholden to getting re-elected all the time.
McConnell is an awful person and stole a Supreme Court Justice from Obama, but had Hillary been elected, he would not have succeeded with that. It is the GOP voters including lots of white women, who helped make the current nightmare scenario of the Supreme Court happen.
Also the court can’t be changed until democrats are given supermajorities across the board. Again white women and men are why this isn’t happening.
Many people aren’t going to like it, but my honest opinion is the rate of technological progression is possibly making it both unethical and irresponsible for people past a certain age to continue having roles in government. I’d even possibly include even voting rights in that when you’re talking about people hitting 85+. We’re actively witnessing societies regressing precisely because a demographic with outsized wealth and political power is dominating political theatre at the expense of the youth. Yes, there are shitty people in every demographic…but the voting statistics are painting a pretty clear picture of what age groups are currently fighting progress every step of the way.
We’re light years behind on where internet legislation should be. Automation is making rapid gains in a job market where worker wages are already unhealthily stagnant. Two generations of women are now growing up in a post-Roe world thanks to the majority votes of their parents generation (who had no problem using the right themselves, of course). That’s not even getting into the devastation of climate change, the detriment of which the younger generations will primarily carry the burden.
Quite literally, while I think societies should provide for the elderly and make sure they’re cared for, I don’t necessarily know that they should continue to have such a powerful voice, not with the way tech is progressing. Forty years ago, computers were just barely starting to take up less than the space of the room. Now, we’re looking at AI tech so powerful it can create images so lifelike that people can’t tell the difference from actual photographs. Think about what you know about tech right now. Imagine where it’ll be in 2070. Do you think you’ll be up to date with it? Will your experiences be relevant to the challenges of the youth? We are increasingly going to face very real questions about who not only can but SHOULD be able to make decisions that affect millions of people.
@ Veronica S: Your arguments — which I vehemently do not agree with — can easily be twisted and adapted for anyone poorer, underserved, trapped in the limited and/ or failing school systems and environments that lack access — including deliberate and systematic access — to technological advances and all that it takes to support them.
First you come for the old. Yes, I’m thinking here of my lucid and proud mother who was able to vote for Obama — a president who looked like her — after a lifetime of disenfranchisement justified by her birthplace in Washington DC, the so-called Capital of the Free World. I think of myself and many of my friends — who were often “pioneers” as we were finally allowed some degree of access to environments that had previously been reserved solely for the white, the male, and often for the rich, and the already powerful. I think too, of the thousands and thousands of students and families that I grew up with and worked with in still-racially-segregated neighborhoods and schools, still dealing with the generational challenges of a society deliberately designed to maintain separate and very much unequal access to almost everything. None of them — none of us — have or are likely to have access to the standards that you’ve set here for technological knowledge. And that’s EXACTLY what the “conservative “, rich, white men now in power want: for people like you to believe your own arguments that people like me are justified in being denied access to power, to voting, to the ability to make decisions for ourselves and our communities, and even to impact others. Good thing that your model will supposedly make sure that we’re “cared for”.
So, yeah: I don’t like it. But people like DeSantis and MCConnell and Steven Miller and Tom Cotton and J D Vance and most of the people on the Supreme Court that I personally view as being flat out evil will probably like it just fine.
Your fear is rich, conservative white men might stay in power, as opposed to now where…rich, conservative whites have been in power continuously for the past two hundred years?
I don’t claim to have all the answers, but I think the statistics paint a pretty blatant picture about the cultural divide between the young and old right now, and this divide isn’t on minor issues. These are issues with major global impact decades down the road. And when you’re looking at medical technology that may very well extend life into the 100s, we are going to have real conversations about these complex realities of aging and politics — or whether even some of this stuff should be a matter of political theater in the first place or handed off to field experts to help determine policy.
Either you need age limits or you need fitness testing. We need term limits that don’t exceed a decade. And what most democracies should likely be doing is mirroring Australia, requiring mandatory voting for everybody of voting age. But at some point it will likely become necessary for nations to address these realities one way or another.
I’ve been very clear in stating my fear: that people who have been historically disenfranchised will continue to be disenfranchised with your proposal. The only difference is how you choose to justify the disenfranchisement.
Age limits say almost nothing about competency or capability. If you have suggestions for fitness testing — that will not penalize citizens already stomped down and systemically restricted by racism, classism, sexism, poll taxes,” literacy” tests, and yes — ageism, I’m open to seriously considering it as a viable option.
While you’re focusing on the future, I’m focusing on the future, the past, AND the present — in America, where many of us are still fighting for our right to vote.
Again, I’m very sure that many rich, white folks — along with throngs of MAGAs, bent on maintaining and expanding their power, will be both thrilled to continue to deny quality educational experiences to underfunded communities — and to then justify denying them /us the vote because we supposedly lack the technological skills and “fitness” to deserve it.
Boomer here. Sick of old white men telling me what to do. Obviously Mitch should resign, but politicians get rich from various “endeavors” and they won’t leave the gravy train.
As to the rest of it, I’ve been passionate about climate change for decades. It’s not new, contrary to what simpletons are being told by the media. Let’s face it, we and our ancestors are ALL directly responsible for what’s happened to the earth and to say boomers caused it is stupid. Posters complaining that Boomers caused them not to be able to buy a house is hilarious! In my area, the biggest and baddest homes all seem to have someone between 25 and 45 living in them.
The generation following us is set to inherit 84.4 TRILLION dollars in wealth over a 25 year period ending by 2045. I worked two full time jobs (yes 40 hours a week) for over 20 years to get what I have. Try that.
Stop whining and be a part of productive solutions. My spouse didn’t go to Vietnam and my father to WWII so you can whinge about how disadvantaged you are. If you want to replace older people in the legislature, put forward viable, trustworthy candidates from your generation and they’ll get elected.
Just a little aside note: Senator Barrasso is (or was) a doctor when he was elected from here in Wyoming. (He actually operated on my arm….not many can say they have had a senator inside them and not sound too too creepy, but…..)
According to the NYT, he was at the Waldorf Astoria for a fundraising event when he fell earlier this year. Which I’m not going to say is a perfectly innocent activity as I’m sure it was lots of large donors and or people representing corporations (since they’re people too now!), but it’s also not some big hush-hush criminal undertaking either. I sincerely hope this guy is on the way out but I don’t think we need to read extra levels of nefariousness into his activities surrounding the first fall. Dude is definitely up to some sketchy shit 100% of the time, some of it out in public, some not so much. The only reason this was “hushed up” is b/c the GOP does not want to deal with a leadership succession (or at least, they want to get it all quietly sewn up in private and not have the press reporting and speculating), not because McConnell was doing/meeting with something/someone embarrassing. We all know they’re shameless, he could have been there to get serviced by underage male prostitutes and probably still keep his leadership position and cruise to re-election.
Awww look they took him off stage and rebooted him