Rand Paul Expresses Doubts About Mitch McConnell’s Health Diagnosis After Recent Freezing Episodes

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell faced scrutiny from his colleague, Senator Rand Paul, regarding his recent health episode where he froze while speaking to reporters. Despite being cleared by doctors, Rand Paul raised questions about the diagnosis provided by the Senate doctor.

Following his second health episode, during which he momentarily froze while speaking to reporters, Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell received well wishes from most of his colleagues. However, Senator Rand Paul, also from Kentucky, expressed doubts about McConnell’s health and the official explanation provided by doctors.

“I don’t think it’s been particularly helpful to have the Senate doctor describing it as dehydration, which I think even a non-physician seeing that probably aren’t really accepting that explanation,” Senator Paul told reporters on Tuesday, according to Punchbowl. He raised concerns about a letter from Dr. Brian P. Monahan, the Capitol’s attending physician, which cleared McConnell to continue his duties.

McConnell’s recent episode occurred when he was asked about running for reelection in 2026 in Kentucky. He briefly stopped speaking and remained silent for seven seconds. This incident marked the second time in recent months that McConnell froze in front of cameras, with a previous occurrence taking place during a news conference at the Capitol where he stopped speaking for 28 seconds and was briefly escorted away.

“Everybody’s seen the clips, it’s not a valid medical diagnosis for people to say that’s dehydration,” Senator Paul, a physician himself, stated. He also referred to McConnell’s previous episode at the Capitol.

Despite both senators hailing from the same home state and being members of the same party, Senator Paul and Senator McConnell have frequently clashed on policy priorities, including issues related to U.S. military assistance to Ukraine.

Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri, another GOP lawmaker, also expressed concern about McConnell’s health and drew parallels with concerns about President Joe Biden’s health. Hawley, who voted against McConnell last year in his bid for Senate minority leader, stated, “You can’t have it both ways. You can’t say that you’re concerned about Joe Biden but you’re not concerned about Mitch McConnell. It’s either one or the other.” He mentioned that Missouri residents, including farmers and business groups, have expressed concerns about McConnell’s health even before his recent episode.

Hawley emphasized that he wishes McConnell the best but hopes that his health will not become a distraction for Republicans as they prepare for the 2024 elections. He also noted that these episodes make it challenging to criticize President Biden for his age, saying, “If you’re concerned about the president, then you’ve got to be concerned about other people in leadership. It’s a two-way street. It’s not one or the other.”

However, some GOP lawmakers defended McConnell and expressed confidence in his ability to continue serving effectively, particularly as Congress faces a busy agenda, including efforts to avert a government shutdown.

Senator Mitt Romney of Utah stated, “We might lose from Mitch McConnell 20 seconds a day, but the other 86,380 seconds are pretty darn good, so I’m supporting him.” Senator Ted Cruz of Texas echoed this sentiment, saying, “The health scares he’s had were frightening, but age comes for us all, and Mitch is stubborn as a mule and he’s tough. He’s been in my prayers in recent weeks, and I have every hope he will recover to full strength.”