US Senate's McConnell freezes up for second time in public ...
Top US Senate Republican Mitch McConnell has frozen up for more than 30 seconds during a public appearance before being escorted away, the second such incident in a little more than a month.
The 81-year-old was responding to questions from reporters after an event in Kentucky when he froze up, staring into space and not responding to reporters and others nearby.
After being approached by a second person, Mr McConnell resumed speaking but needed reporters' questions repeated to him and only answered two more questions.
The longest-serving Senate party leader in history, Mr McConnell's voice was shaky and quiet.
The incident raised fresh questions among Republican and Democratic members of Congress about some of their ageing colleagues.
He declined to say whether he would support former US president Donald Trump as the Republican nominee for president before walking away with a staffer.
Staffers escorted Mitch McConnell away after he froze up.(ABC Network Affiliate WCPO via Reuters)
An aide said the senator would be consulting with a physician prior to his next public event with the Senate due to reconvene on Tuesday after a more-than-month-long summer recess.
"Leader McConnell felt momentarily light-headed and paused during his press conference today," Mr McConnell's spokesperson said.
US President Joe Biden said he hoped to speak to his "good friend" Mr McConnell shortly after hearing of the incident.
"Mitch is a friend, as you know, not a joke. I know people don't believe that's the case but we have disagreements politically, but he is a good friend. So I am going to try to get in touch with him."
The incident was similar to one that took place in the US Capitol on July 26, when Mr McConnell froze in the middle of a press conference and had to be led away, returning several minutes later to finish taking questions.
After that incident, an aide said the senator had felt light-headed. Two days later, a spokesperson said that Mr McConnell planned to remain in his leadership post through the 2024 election.
Mr McConnell froze this time after being asked whether he intended to run again in 2026, when his six-year term is up.
An aide helped Mitch McConnell after he froze up.(ABC Network Affiliate WCPO via Reuters)
During the appearance he expressed support for Republican Kentucky Attorney-General Daniel Cameron as the "far and away the best candidate" for governor, following the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce event in Covington.
'Not fit for office' complaints of ageing US politiciansMr McConnell had been sidelined from the Senate earlier this year after he tripped at a Washington dinner on March 8 and was admitted to a hospital for treatment of a concussion.
He also suffered a minor rib fracture and was later moved to a rehabilitation facility, returning to the Senate in April.
Many top figures in Washington are of advanced age, with Mr Biden running for re-election at 80 and the average age in the Senate above 64.
Democratic US senator Dianne Feinstein, 90, was sidelined for months this year after a bout of shingles that caused complications including encephalitis and Ramsay Hunt syndrome, which can cause facial paralysis.
An aide had to tell her what to say during a Senate hearing in July after she became confused and gave unexpected responses.
Dianne Feinstein has been having bouts of confusion.(Reuters: Joshua Roberts)
A majority of Americans, about 61 per cent, told a November Reuters/Ipsos poll that they were very or somewhat concerned that members of Congress are too old to represent the American people.
Mr Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican 2024 presidential nomination, is 77.
Criticism of ageing politicians most often comes from the opposite political party, but Republican representative Marjorie Taylor Greene posted the McConnell video on X (Twitter) citing it as an example of "people who are not fit for office".
Democratic representative Dean Phillips said the family, friends, and staff of senators Feinstein and McConnell were doing them and the country a disservice, posting on X that "it's time for term limits for Congress and the Supreme Court".
Congress is bracing for what is expected to be a bitter fight to secure an agreement on funding the US government past the end of the fiscal year on September 30.
In previous years Mr McConnell, who has led his party in the Senate since 2007, has played a key role in negotiations.
Mr McConnell has served as Senate majority leader from 2015 to 2021 and as Senate minority leader since then.
Democrats, including three independents who vote with them, currently hold a 51-49 majority in the Senate, when all senators are present.
Reuters/ABC
