CNN Apologizes For Using Fake Congressman’s Quote On Mitch McConnell’s Health: ‘Obviously We Should Not Have Done That’

CNN issued an on-air mea culpa on Thursday morning after admitting the network fell for a post by a parody account of a Republican congressman who said he had spoken to ailing Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY).

Following a report on the ongoing saga of McConnell’s mysterious absence and lack of transparency about his current condition, CNN This Morning host Audie Cornish mentioned the flub from a day earlier.

“Yesterday on the show, we displayed quotes from a Republican, some Republicans, about Senator Mitch McConnell’s stay in the hospital,” Cornish said. One of them was mistakenly taken from a parody account on Twitter. Now, obviously, we should not have done that, and we regret the error.”

The post in question came amid a flurry of social media posts from Republican figures who said they had spoken to McConnell, each for about 20 minutes.

CNN ran a graphic of the posts, including one from Rep. Jack Kimble, who is not a real congressman and does not actually exist.

The saga of McConnell’s health has been running rampant on the social media rumor mill since the longtime senator was found unconscious in his home and hospitalized on June 14.

Since then, little has been revealed about his care or current condition.

Republican Rep. Marlin Stutzman (IN) went so far as to say he doesn’t even know if McConnell is alive during an interview with NewsNation on Thursday.

Watch above via CNN.

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