Daily Show’s Ronny Chieng Calls BS on Republicans’ ‘Very Legit’ Mitch McConnell Calls

The Daily Show host Ronny Chieng called “bullsh*t” on Republicans’ claims to have held multiple 20-minute calls with hospitalized Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) in a bid to reassure voters who have mounting questions over his condition.

The 84-year-old senator has not appeared publicly since he was hospitalized on June 14 with undisclosed health issues, and with his office releasing only limited updates, speculation about his condition is rife with unconfirmed claims by MAGA activist Laura Loomer that the senator was “officially brain dead” went viral.

Chieng rounded on a comment by a panelist on CNN’s NewsNight suggesting that the senator send a “60-second proof of life video” from his hospital bed to show he’s “OK.”

“You’re asking for a proof of life video from the hospital?” the host jibed, “84-year-olds have trouble shooting video when they’re perfectly healthy, OK? If he can shoot a video without his thumb covering the camera, we should make him King of America.”

He continued: “Besides, what good is a proof-of-life video? We’ll talk about Mitch McConnell. For the past two years, we’ve been watching him in videos where I have no idea if he’s alive.”

Turning to McConnell’s age, Chieng quipped: “I think it’s pretty clear why he was admitted. He’s an incredibly old man. He’s half the age of America, all right? Look at him, he was probably diagnosed with, I don’t know, being extremely 84.”

After GOP allies Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso and conservative CNN pundit Scott Jennings claimed to have held separate conversations with McConnell lasting around “20 minutes,” Chieng took aim.

“Yeah, that’s right. He’s doing that totally normal alive person thing where you spend your day calling multiple guys for 20 minutes. It’s all very legit,” the host joked.

Rounding on Jennings’ claim to have talked specifically to the senator for “about 17 minutes.”

“Yeah, OK, no, no. Let’s put – no, I’m sorry, I gotta call bullsh*t,” he said. “17 minutes is way too specific of a number. When you describe phone calls, you say 15 minutes or 20 minutes. Anything else is like a deposition.”

Watch above via Comedy Central.

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!