CNN Statement Makes Clear Scott Jennings’ Mitch McConnell Claim Is Not Network’s ‘Reporting’

Rogelio V. Solis/AP photo

CNN moved Friday to clarify that Scott Jennings’ claims about Senator Mitch McConnell’s (R-KY) health and his account of speaking with the Republican lawmaker do “not” constitute its own reporting.

McConnell was taken to the hospital on June 14, and with his office offering little information in public statements, speculation began to grow online about the senator’s health, including claims pushed online by MAGA activist Laura Loomer that he was “brain dead.”

As questions continue to swirl over McConnell’s condition following his hospitalization nearly a month ago, CNN, like other major networks, covered the intrigue.

That’s when Jennings, a longtime McConnell ally who once ran political operations for his Senate campaigns, claimed on Tuesday he had spoken with the hospitalized 84-year-old senator by phone for “17-minutes.” Following that, several top Republicans also said they’d had calls with McConnell.

However, in a statement to The Daily Beast, a CNN spokesperson clarified that the network’s reporters have not independently verified Jennings’ account and distanced the claims from its own reporting:

As a CNN Political Commentator, Scott Jennings is not a full-time employee or journalist for the network. His account of a personal conversation with Senator McConnell reflects his experience and is not CNN reporting.

Footage released Friday showed the senator being loaded into an ambulance outside his Washington home on the day he took ill, with accompanying dispatch audio indicating there was a report of an unconscious person in cardiac arrest.

Appearing on CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper on Thursday, Jennings said he had been in contact with McConnell’s staff, subsequent to his call with the senator himself, and said the Republican “was actually meeting with some of his staff late this afternoon about a few issues going on over at the Senate.”

Watch above via CNN.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!