Scott Jennings Shuts Down Mitch McConnell Rumors, Details Lengthy Phone Call

(AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

CNN commentator Scott Jennings said Tuesday that he spoke to Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell “this morning,” amid ongoing speculation about the former Senate majority leader’s health.

Jennings, who is from Kentucky and was a longtime McConnell advisor, posted on X, saying he had been in contact with McConnell after wild conspiracy theories on social media proclaimed the veteran legislator was actually brain-dead and not returning to the Senate.

“I spoke to my old friend Mitch McConnell this morning, the senior Senator from Kentucky. He’s still recovering in the hospital. We talked for just shy of 20 minutes … about IRAN, UKRAINE, the unfolding situation in MAINE, my visit to the TR Presidential Library, and even a little bit of Senate history. I told him we want to see him back at work as soon as possible,” Jennings wrote on X.

McConnell also spoke to Senate Whip John Barrasso (R-WY), according to others on X.

Al Weaver of NOTUS reported McConnell spoke to Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) yesterday, and Barrasso today.

“Per a Thune spox: ‘Leader Thune spoke with Sen. McConnell yesterday by phone. They had a lengthy and substantive conversation that covered a variety of topics, including national security,'” he wrote on X.

Meanwhile, New York Times Congressional reporter Catie Edmonson, citing a Barrasso spokeswoman,  wrote on X that Barrasso and McConnell spoke by phone for about 20 minutes, and discussed “the Graham Platner scandal, and the recent Supreme Court ruling on coordinated spending limits.”

McConnell, 84, was rushed to the hospital after being found unconscious in his home on June 14.

The senator’s office has repeatedly issued the same statement saying McConnell is “working closely” with his colleagues, and Thune claimed to have spoken with him by phone after his hospitalization — but McConnell hasn’t been seen in weeks.

Questions about McConnell’s status soared Monday afternoon after Laura Loomer posted on X: High level source close to the White House tells me “Mitch McConnell is officially brain dead. He’s not coming back.”

The resulting furor apparently prompted one of McConnell’s three children, eldest daughter Porter McConnell, to deactivate her account on the platform.

Others were quick to demand proof of life.

“Who is running Mitch McConnell’s office right now? It sure isn’t Mitch McConnell. Where is he?” Mila Joy posted on X.

The Kentucky senator is in his seventh term and is currently the longest-serving senator in state history.

McConnell stepped down from his party leadership role in 2024 and was replaced by Thune.

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