December 12, 2024 - 6:30pm
Someone recently sent me a picture of Mitch McConnell, the day after the election, being pushed through an airport in a wheelchair. At the time, McConnell remained Senate minority leader. While he technically still holds that office, the Kentucky Republican has ceded power to John Thune, who was elected leader by his GOP peers in mid-November. The image went viral this week in MAGA circles, after Trump loyalists were provoked by a new interview in which McConnell attacked the America First movement.
Despite stepping down weeks ago, McConnell still “commands deference” in the upper chamber, a source has told me. That could pose a serious threat to the foreign policy agenda of President-elect Donald Trump — which is precisely what McConnell is now trying to signal.
But health remains the senator’s biggest challenge. Just this week, McConnell fell again in the Capitol. According to his office, he suffered “minor injuries” to his face and wrist, while photographs showed significant bruising. It’s been reported for over a year that he’s occasionally relied on a wheelchair to get around, though few if any pictures previously circulated. The year before, the senator was hospitalised for a concussion and appeared to publicly freeze on at least two occasions.
While the 82-year-old has stepped down from the top post, he’s intentionally slotted himself into another key position, chairing the incoming Senate appropriations committee’s subcommittee for defence and helming the hugely important rules committee. Just this week, he boasted to the Financial Times: “That’s where the real money is,” making it crystal clear he’s not ceding influence even as age takes a greater toll on his physical and mental capacities.
“He still has tremendous power,” my source explained on Thursday. “Cult of personality power and technical power through appropriations and rules.” They added: “He’s not slinking back into the Borg by any means.” It’s now on Thune, the source argued, to prove he’s not McConnell’s “puppet”.
A senior GOP aide in the Senate shared similar sentiments, making careful note of McConnell’s moves over the last several weeks. “McConnell has spent his first month of post-leader life publicly opposing Trump’s America First foreign policy, working against his nominees behind the scenes, and scolding Republicans that funding the war in Ukraine should be their top priority,” they told me.
Join the discussion
Join like minded readers that support our journalism by becoming a paid subscriber
To join the discussion in the comments, become a paid subscriber.
Join like minded readers that support our journalism, read unlimited articles and enjoy other subscriber-only benefits.
Subscribe