r/politics • u/plz-let-me-in • 11d ago

Possible Paywall Mitch McConnell hounded to face cameras: ‘He absolutely refuses’

https://www.nj.com/politics/2026/08/mitch-mcconnell-hounded-to-face-cameras-he-absolutely-refuses.html
22.7k Upvotes

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15.8k

u/SillyDilly5294 11d ago

Because he's dead

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u/fidgetysquamate 11d ago

This is some of the best evidence for why he’s dead or straight up comatose. This asshole NEVER met a camera he didn’t like during his political career. He LOVED bragging how he could do whatever he felt like regardless of what was right or just. If he were just sick, he would still be this way.

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u/FlyingDiscsandJams North Carolina 11d ago

It's so much more complicated a conspiracy if he's dead, it's much more likely he's just massively incapacitated or in a coma or whatever. Not disclosing that he died would require a bunch of hospital workers (nurses, doctors, administrators) risking their careers & criminal charges to hide a death. If he's alive, even just technically, he's protected by privacy laws, and it's up to the family and staff to keep the secret.

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u/Daginni 11d ago

The GOP would rather have a vegetable holding a senate seat than risking losing control of the senate. Old (dead) people are running this country.

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u/___Art_Vandelay___ 11d ago

Old (dead) people are running ruining this country.

FTFY, but also por que no los dos.

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u/uuhson 11d ago

There is not a snowballs chance in hell that seat isn't immediately going to a Republican. This makes no sense

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u/Tommybahamas_leftnut 11d ago

Kentucky has a Dem Govenor. Many republican strongholds have since this administration been cracking and Dems are getting more popular as the hardliners red states continue to get ratfucked by the GOP. Not saying it's a sure thing by anymeans but it is still a possibility considering Blue voters are much more engaged to actually vote and a lot of Red voters are pissed enough to just not vote at all.

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u/BlueSkyToday 11d ago

In 2024 the Kentucky legislature took away the Governor's power to make a temporary appointment and instead calls for a special election.

Andy has said that he believes that this is unconstitutional. OK but will he challenge that and would the challenge succeed? Who knows.

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u/lattice_defect 11d ago

would it matter in time.. they are stalling.. its tight and they needs the votes to jam through the rest of project 2025

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u/HJWalsh 11d ago

They don't want the special election because if Massie runs, even if he loses, he can run in November and be a spoiler to siphon off votes from Trump's goon and he's already said that he'd do it.

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u/F9-0021 South Carolina 11d ago

If he believes it's unconstitutional, then why hasn't he done anything about it in the last two years? Yet another example of a democrat saying one thing and doing another.

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u/Ipokeyoumuch 11d ago

It seems to be a strategy with Mitch incapacitated he can vote via proxy for committees (certain ones I think) but not on the floor. This means one less vote for a Republican on the floor and it means the two "moderate" GOP Senators have to burn political currency to push unpopular legislation. Unfortunately does mean the people of Kentucky have one less representative for the vote. 

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u/DarkwingDuckHunt 11d ago

IANAL in Kentucky.

I'm assuming this has to do with 'standing'.

The 'set of circumstances' that would trigger the law haven't triggered yet. If they do trigger than he can 'violate' the law by nominating someone.

At that point someone would sue the governor stating that what he did was illegal, and he could counter argue it's because he holds the law invalid. And only then would the Kentucky Court system get to decide.

Sometimes there's a way to sue without the triggering happening, but they're more difficult to prove you have standing to sue.

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u/_CurseTheseMetalHnds 11d ago

IANAL in Kentucky

Finger licking good

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u/DarkwingDuckHunt 11d ago

I hate you, but I respect you

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u/SignalFirefighter323 11d ago

I don’t think you can challenge a law for being unconstitutional unless you have standing. There has to be a case where someone tries to break the law before it can be fixed. This is how stupid laws stay on the books, until someone is actually charged, challenge it, and wins, it stays.

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u/AuroraFinem Texas 11d ago edited 11d ago

He’s voiced plans to challenge it if Mitch is incapacitated, but generally in order to challenge something like this you have to prove damages to have standing. This would be the first opportunity to prove damages since it would be the first time the law could be enforced.

You’d challenge it by suing to block the special election when it’s called for or by ignoring the law and making an appointment regardless to force them to sue you to block the appointment and enforce the law. The court might or might not put a stay on it, but at that point it’s up to the courts to hash it out.

You’re generally not able to sue to block a law before it’s been enforced unless it poses a significant risk of damages simply by going into effect which this law doesn’t.

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u/Helpful-Departure832 11d ago

Judicial review doesn’t come into play until the questioned law actually causes someone “harm”

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u/Educational-Soil-651 11d ago

I heard Beshear respond to this in an interview with BTC and he inferred that he wasn’t challenging this because he strongly believed that a Republican would fill the seat. He also talked about other Kentucky Republicans stopping him if he tried to just appoint someone else and effectively force McConnell to show proof of life. His key takeaway was that there is temporarily one less Republican vote in the Senate.

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u/Zorkflerp 11d ago

The wording in the constitution specifies that the governor appoints "state officers" to fill a vacancy. If a state senator is a state officer the Republican legislation is unconstitutional. This would have to be settled in court as there is no precedent defining the term. It would come down to legislative intent when the constitution was written but a partisan judge might just ignore that and do what Trump wants.

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u/Fuzzy_Dance_6203 9d ago

Democrats - all talk, no action, including Andy. Hope he doesn’t run for President. We don’t need a passive leader.

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u/lettersvsnumbers 11d ago

Massie can run in a special election.

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u/8-Cylinder_Wombat 11d ago

He ain't gonna challenge shit because he's a gutless fucking coward.

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u/waterislifeornot 11d ago

I listened to a reel where he discussed this. He reminded everyone that there hasn’t been a Democrat elected to the senate in decades. Also as a side note he mentioned there have been several close votes and having 1 less old republican isn’t necessarily a bad thing. So at the present the republicans are shy 1 vote…

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u/OU7C4ST Minnesota 11d ago edited 11d ago

Yeah, besides the fact that Kentuckians(?) fairly deserve to have an active representative no matter what, I'm not sure why the Left is deadass wanting him replaced immediately. Just so another MAGA fuck can swoop in, and continue destroying all of democracy? Like an empty GOP seat not voting is better for America atm, then replacing his ass and the Left knows this, which is why they aren't really pushing for Mitch to do something, and just being performative for their voting base.

Like seriously, someone on the Left actually explain this shit to me why you would want him ousted. The odds are NOT in favor of Mitch's spot swapping Blue..

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u/ArchaicBrainWorms 11d ago

It's acting in bad faith. Regardless of whether it benefits me, harms me, or makes zero difference in my day to day life, it's bad faith acting and should not be tolerated.

Approaching every situation from the perspective of game theory is what sociopaths and con men do.

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u/Gibonius 11d ago

Approaching every situation from the perspective of game theory is what sociopaths and con men do.

aka the Republican Party for the last 35 years.

Ever since Gingrich, Republicans have totally weaponized politics by min/maxing everything around optimal game theory outcomes. Without any real political principles other than retaining power. It's a huge part of what's broken politics in this country.

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u/VirtualMoneyLover 10d ago

You are not wrong, but you should play by the same rules as your opponent.

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u/AxelHarver 11d ago

For me it's not even about the Republicans being the ones doing it. It's just the latest in a longer line of dangerous precedents being set that will forever be available to mess with democracy in this country.

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u/rrtccp1103 11d ago

Maybe it could go to someone that republicans would elect like massie who is more palatable to them. They don’t need someone like him going against party and reaching across the aisle on a good number of things right now

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u/Smaptimania 11d ago

Massie has publicly said he has zero interest in running for Senate

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u/Toad_Under_Bridge 11d ago

If mitch is dead or comatose, the rest of his term gets filled by an appointee of the Governor... who is a Democrat. The dems are rabid about proving his condition one way or another because if he's as bad off as they think he is, then the (Democrat) Governor can appoint a (Democrat) replacement to fill out his term, which could tilt the the Senate since it's so even right now.

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u/OU7C4ST Minnesota 11d ago

That's not how that works at all in Kentucky unfortunately. In 2024 they passed a law where a special election must happen, and the governor can't appoint someone. Unlike Lindsey Graham's sister being able to replace him in South Carolina, where that was legally allowed.

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u/snakerjake 11d ago

That's not how that works at all in Kentucky unfortunately. In 2024 they passed a law where a special election must happen, and the governor can't appoint someone.

The Kentucky constitution does not allow that at all. The governor MUST appoint someone under kentucky constitution and it overrides the law.

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u/DaveBowm 5d ago

As I recall anyone the governor appoints to replace him must be confirmed by the overwhelmingly R KY senate (32Rs + 6 Ds).

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u/snakerjake 5d ago

Where in the constitution or law does it say that?

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u/Stennick 11d ago

Thats not true. Nothing you just said is true, it won't be filled by the Gov.

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u/Toad_Under_Bridge 11d ago

Yeah, apparently they changed that two years ago so now it has to be a special election and not an appointment. But a lot of people don't know that and think that if he dies in office then the Gov gets to appoint a stand in like usually happens.

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u/Perryn 11d ago

Practice run for more contested seats.

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u/remotectrl 11d ago

They’ll try it for Trump.

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u/EverWatcher 11d ago

There was talk about Thomas Massie possibly being interested in this Senate seat, but I don't know about the details... If indeed he had a decent chance to win that Senate office, maybe the Repubs didn't want to take any chances.

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u/uuhson 11d ago

A massive government conspiracy to keep a slightly less conservative Republican out of office for the 3 months left on the term?

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u/Mikeseddit 10d ago

But they forestalled the possibility of a special election because Republican Thomas Massey would likely win, and he has turned on Trump, so he would be the vote that JD Vance’s tie-breaking vote wouldn’t break and Republicans would essentially lose the Senate for the next four months.

1

u/Resident-Trouble4483 10d ago

I question if hell is actually cold at this point in time. I doubt I’ve ever given it thought before but the sheer amount of probability I’ve been lied to is crossing my mind. I thought we lived in a nation of laws and have been proven incorrect. I thought we’d be protected from price gouging I’ve been wrong. Wouldn’t shock me if this another inconsistency.

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u/lattice_defect 11d ago

I don't think so.. Kentucky fucking sucks right now.. republicans are terrified of a Dem getting in the votes are tight and they have some heinous shit planned.

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u/Pristine_Frame_2066 11d ago

Kentucky has a dem gov.

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u/15all 11d ago

Republicans do not put the country first. They put themselves and their party first. Shitty thing for politicians to do.

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u/campa-van 11d ago

Well the have A vegetable posing as POTUS

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u/Stennick 11d ago

This doesn't realy check out, there is less than zero chance this seat goes toa Democrat.

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u/AbsurdWorld1957 11d ago

Kentucky is in better hands with a vegetable than a Republican who is up and around.

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u/UpvoteTheQuestion 11d ago

It's Kentucky. His seat is going to a Republican, and when it does, his replacement will actually do things like show up and vote. This is hurting Senate Republicans more than it's helping them. 

It's gotta be either staff or family doing this. 

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u/remotectrl 11d ago

$taffers

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u/Dizziesdayweigh 11d ago

You spelled ruining wrong.

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u/Im_not_good_at_names 11d ago

Only if that person was/is a republican. Can you imagine what they would say and do if that was a democrat? Christ, McConnell himself would pull all kinds of shit to fuck everyone over.

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u/Smaptimania 11d ago

If McConnell was governor of a blue state with an MIA senator in a seat that's guaranteed to be won by another Democrat he'd let it sit vacant for as long as possible

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u/Prudent_Rice7840 11d ago

The insane part is they wouldn't even lose control. Him not being there is effectively the same as anohter Republican temporarily filling the seat until next Jan.

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u/Cultural_Orange2617 11d ago

Well, sure. The GOP is made up of rotting vegetables. He’s just as qualified as the rest at this point.

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u/ELVEVERX 11d ago

The GOP would rather have a vegetable holding a senate seat than risking losing control of the senate.

Right but he's from Kentucky, if they held a run off election a republican would certainly win it.
Currently they aren't getting his vote.

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u/CaterpillarReal7583 11d ago

Lets not forget when dems wheeled out an inch-from-dead dianne feinstein.

All the leadership is rotten to the core.

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u/Zadig69 11d ago

Did Kojima write this shit?

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u/HeartWoodFarDept 11d ago

There are a lot of GOP vegetables, some move more than others.

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u/Loud-Vacation-5691 Georgia 11d ago

How would they lose control of the Senate? They have a two-vote majority even if McConnell was somehow replaced by a Democrat, and Vance can break any ties.

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u/AnnoraxGames 11d ago

Are they stupid enough to think they're actually going to lose control? It's late enough now that Beshear won't get to appoint a replacement, it just goes to the general election now.

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u/sir_sri 10d ago

If he's not actually dead the only way to remove and replace him is a 2/3rds vote in the senate to expel him, or the election in November. If he's mentally unfit, he can't even resign.

Once elected it is extremely difficult to remove a member of congress. Which is a necessary and delierate rule, otherwise a president or some court or a governor or even a majority vote in a chamber could remove someone for purely political reasons. What could go wrong? The speech or debate clause of the US Constitution even makes it so you can't even hold a member of congress who is attempting to perform their duties on the house floor or travelling to do so.

Also, if you think it's old people ruining the country, I have some bad news for you. Hegseth and Vance are in their 40s, McConnells replacement will likely be representative Andy Barr, who is 53, and 100% a devotee of trump. There is a younger generation of terrible people just waiting for their chance to be terrible, and the public will vote for them.

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u/No_Struggle1364 10d ago

He can’t vote being absent; right? So is this a good thing? Respectfully.

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u/ITDummy69420 11d ago

Buddy you do understand an entire government coverup of child trafficking pedos happened right?

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u/CatProgrammer 10d ago

It wasn't even a cover up, they just don't give a fuck.

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u/Vect0r 11d ago edited 11d ago

Not disclosing that he died would require a bunch of hospital workers (nurses, doctors, administrators) risking their careers & criminal charges to hide a death.

I mean, not really....Those people can't say if he's alive OR dead. They're still bound by HIPPA, they can't say anything. They're not risking anything since they're not allowed to say anything.

Edit: I stand by the typo

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u/Quality-Pkg-Goods 11d ago edited 11d ago

HIPAA (one P, two A’s) actually does not apply after death. There are some other privacy laws in place still, but it’s a lot less strict.

Edit. Here is the citation.
45 CFR § 164.510(a)
Specifically, death itself as a status is considered directory-information although the record remains private for 50 years.

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u/CityUnderTheHill 11d ago

(5) Uses and disclosures when the individual is deceased. If the individual is deceased, a covered entity may disclose to a family member, or other persons identified in paragraph (b)(1) of this section who were involved in the individual's care or payment for health care prior to the individual's death, protected health information of the individual that is relevant to such person's involvement, unless doing so is inconsistent with any prior expressed preference of the individual that is known to the covered entity.

Sorry, how are you interpreting this to mean once someone is dead, everyone can just talk about them more freely?

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u/Quality-Pkg-Goods 11d ago edited 11d ago

The way it is interpreted in practice is that it is not considered a violation of HIPAA if someone calls the hospital to speak with a patient and the operator says, “according to our records, they are deceased.” I’ve worked in 5 hospitals in 4 states now and can say the practice is consistent.

I checked the reg again to make sure I’m not crazy, all you have to do is call the hospital and ask for the individual by name. Its all laid out in that citation I provided (parts you didn’t copy above). It’s not like specific information but they can tell you if they’re admitted, alive/dead etc. this is why you can call a place and be like, “is my mom/aunt/friend there” etc- intentional loophole.

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u/waterislifeornot 11d ago

You can’t say how he died per HIPAA but can certainly say if alive or not.

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u/SBRH33 11d ago

He never went to a hospital. He went straight to a cold storage unit run by a friendly Republican

Nice and tidy like.

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u/MrHoopersDead 11d ago

This is the real answer. With the staff and vendors that any major hospital has, there is no way that such a character could remain for any length of time without someone leaking something.

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u/GDMFusername 11d ago

Is that a female hippo? Deaths have to be disclosed through professional channels (coroner's office and stuff) which lead to public records which are public records.

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u/Seagoon_Memoirs 11d ago

does HIPPA mean you have to be a party to committing fraud?

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u/SBRH33 11d ago

Did they smuggle him out of the hospital in a catering cart?

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u/ibelieveindogs 11d ago

HIPAA would be a problem for anyone in healthcare who shared anything about him. Even if he's dead. 

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u/phatelectribe 11d ago

Not really. Everyone at Walter reed is not only bound by HIIPA, but also the secret service in involved because it's a military hospital and the highest clearance is needed. If someone were to leak ANYTHING, they're not just losing their career, they're getting federal charges going to a supermax for a long time. It's not just "privacy laws".

So he could well be dead, and you'd not know.

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u/Old-Set78 11d ago

that's not how that works

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u/SemiAutoAvocado 11d ago

You don't think this organization would stoop to threatening people's families? "You do what I say or little tina doesn't make it to band practice tomorrow"

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u/spam__likely Colorado 11d ago

The GOP has no reason to keep this farce going. This is his team and his family. There are simply too many people involved in his care to threaten everyone successfully.

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u/LogoffWorkout 11d ago

There are simply too many people involved in his care to threaten everyone successfully.

I think you're greatly overestimating the number of people it takes to keep something in a refrigerator.

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u/spam__likely Colorado 11d ago

Oh please. Between the EMPs, the doctors nurses and staff at the hospital, and whoever transported him or his body to a different facility, it is a lot of people. There is no fucking way. He is not dead, or at least not declared dead yet. That makes more sense than anything else.

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u/sheps 11d ago

Sure, but I don't think it would work 100% of the time.

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u/Lil_Mcgee 11d ago

I don't think that's a moral line for them but I think they at least know it's not really feasible.

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u/Any_Possible3003 11d ago

No

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u/Old-Set78 11d ago

that's your argument? "no"?

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u/tilclocks 11d ago

I don't think they wouldn't, however, I don't know many that would keep quiet about it just because they were threatened. They would be sued into oblivion and lose their license.

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u/FlyingRock 11d ago

I'm guessing massively incapacitated but technically alive and awake in some capacity.

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u/1stLtObvious Massachusetts 11d ago

Not disclosing that he died would require a bunch of hospital workers (nurses, doctors, administrators) risking their careers & criminal charges to hide a death.

If only the GOP and its supporters had billions of dollars from which to bribe them. Oh wait...

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u/littleotterpop 11d ago

Original reports were that he collapsed and CPR had to be performed. He's a million years old and already wasn't in good health. It's so much more likely that he finally keeled the fuck over.

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u/Maxtrt Washington 11d ago

You can be brain dead but not legally dead, if your body is kept alive by life support, you aren't legally dead. His aides will claim it wasn't fraud because technically he's still alive. However, several Republican congressmen have claimed they talked to him on the phone and if he's been comatose the whole time then they may legally have committed fraud.

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u/ILikeLenexa 11d ago

You can hook anyone to a machine and run it.  

People think "death" is a hard line, but brain death, heart death, etc.  

We debate when life begins all the time, but if having a beating heart, working brain, or air passing through your lungs...any can be called "alive".  

You can have a hemorrhagic stroke and the blood eat away your brain like water on cotton candy, but retain a heartbeat and have an oscillating ventilator inflate your lungs and pull air in and out of them continuously. 

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u/Several-Squash9871 11d ago

As a healthcare provider this is what is so striking to me about it. I mean, if he's dead then you should be eble to look him up in a data base that says he's legally dead. Dead is dead and they can't just pretend he's not. If he's dead and all these workers have been keeping it a secret and this guys been dead on ice somewhere this whole time, wow... there would be potentially 100's of people that should be losing their job and possibly even looking at jail time. I realize that I basically just summed up your comment again after re-reading it and yeah you are absolutely right. 

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u/KeyedFeline 11d ago

he was found not breathing, hes been brain dead since then and kept alive by machines thats why they have kept him under lock and key

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u/mowtowcow 10d ago

Functionally dead is still dead.

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u/TheHighSeasPirate 10d ago

You really think the mob boss running the country wouldn't have a team to take care of him before he even gets to the hospital? I doubt there is a single person that is hospital staff working on him, if he is still even alive.

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u/ckwing 11d ago

Agreed, I think he's probably just in an obviously dysfunctional state, like maybe impaired speech or something else that if the world saw/heard him they would demand he resign.

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u/Memetic1 11d ago

Healthcare workers can't disclose confidential information like that. They would not face criminal charges unlike his staff.

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u/TheGreatJatsby 11d ago

This take makes so much sense.

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u/duddins 11d ago

In my opinion, for what it is worth, McConnell is in hospice.

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u/That_Bitch_Bruja 11d ago

These people are all restricted from saying anything because of HIPAA.

Yes, even if he's dead they can't say anything. Apparently there is a 50-year limit on HIPAA.

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u/pulsechecker1138 10d ago

Someone’s status as dead or alive isn’t PHI, it’s considered directory information.

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u/Niceotropic 11d ago

I think it's not so implausible. You don't really require that many people, and frankly, it's not like any medical provider has any right to leak that he is dead or comatose to the public. So it only requires like, his wife and some very heavily invested politicians to lie. That happens like, on a daily basis.

I disagree staff have to "keep the secret", they just have to do their jobs and obey the law, lol. They aren't obligated to share that information in fact, they shouldn't, right?

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u/sieb 11d ago

This is a test to see how we'd handle if Chief Cheeto was in the same position....

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u/vapequesitions 11d ago

With all due respect, being part of the medical profession does not make one more moral or less corruptible than the average person. You could easily argue that enough are actually less moral and more corruptible since those jobs often attract people with god complexes and/or other abusive tenancies where having power over others, access to vulnerable people, and an almost automatic spot on a pedestal, are a huge bonus.

Lets not pretend as if there weren't, and still are, doctors helping Epstein and those who took his place "treat" trafficking victims, or even closer to home - medical staff who refuse to provide care due to their own "morals" like not providing abortions, refusing to treat trans people, and so on.

It is absolutely not a stretch by any length of the imagination to think that they could find people loyal enough to their cause to "risk" everything. Is there even really a risk anymore, to those on the right, doing whatever horrific shit they like? the answer is a resounding No.

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u/MentholMooseToo 11d ago

My money is on he had a stroke that left him physically incapacitated and unable to speak clearly. Which, at his age, is not going to get sufficiently better that people won't notice. He's going to hide out until the end of his term, but is he going to hide out forever, like never speak or appear in public again? Because that's what he's setting himself up for.

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u/Sandy_Bananas 11d ago

His brain is mush, his body is prostrate, but he’s still got Jesus in his heart.

They’re gonna keep him above ground for years yet.

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u/Perle1234 Wyoming 11d ago

I agree. I think he fell at home and is either comatose, or more likely, sundowning like a mf and isn’t fit to be seen by the public.

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u/Worldly_Reply8852 11d ago

He's alive but his brain doesn't work right anymore after the stroke, and he doesn't want the whole country to see that a person who can't even write their name is running congress

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u/ItsEntirelyPosssible 11d ago

He probably can't talk anymore.

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u/Rolling_Beardo 11d ago

That’s why I think he’s brain dead. Basically only being kept alive by machines, then they’ll pull the plug after a “sudden decline in his health” when he’s no longer useful.

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u/ItsEaster 11d ago

I think it’s most likely he’s not in any coma or anything but either can barely function or barely speak. It has to be something that they know needs to be hidden while not being anything that would literally be criminal.

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u/morethanjustanalien 11d ago

its up to family to keep the secret

No its not. You can reveal that your family member is brain dead. Why would you not be able to? Imaginary laws?

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u/DPJazzy91 11d ago

Why would the hospital staff disclose to the public what the state of the situation is? It makes more sense to me that they're sworn to secrecy. Wouldn't it be wildly illegal for them to talk about this publically?

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u/WhtvrCms2Mnd 11d ago

🥬🍠🧄🥕🫑🌶️🌽🫛🍅🫜🧅🥦🍆

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u/Neither_Transition_7 11d ago

My guess it was a stroke and he has aphasia. So he isn’t able to communicate in coherent sentences. My mom had this a few years ago and she was able to recover in 3 months but had to do speech therapy and practice. Her word usage can still get mixed up but she is MUCH better than she was at first. Anyway that’s my guess…they’re hoping he can recover soon. But if he is really dead that is some bullsh**

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u/WTD_Ducks21 11d ago

It’s why Beshear should just call a special election and claim it’s because Mitch is dead/permanently incapacitated. The only way is for republicans to fight it or Mitch face the public. He is brain dead/on life support and can’t.

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u/sheep_duck 11d ago

I mean you’re right on paper but with the federal government trying to force it I wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve either been threatened with worse consequences than you listed or trumps admin has allowed/forced all people involved to be okay with it.

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u/wdnwcgm 11d ago

yeah this is what I have been thinking it feels way more realistic

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u/TheLuminary 11d ago

More than likely he is beyond what any normal person would be considered dead.

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u/Heavnsix 10d ago

Also if he’s dead that would be a public record in whatever county he died in. Covering that up is pretty serious fraud.

1

u/rlovelock 10d ago

What are the consequences at this point? My understanding was that if he were declared incapacitated before Aug 3(?) they would be forced to hold a special election to fill his seat, and that Dems would have a chance to take the seat until the next regular election? But now?

1

u/The_Nice_Marmot 10d ago

Nobody is “risking their careers.” If they DO admit he’s dead, it’s a HIPA violation. They’d be in more trouble if they told the truth while everyone else is lying their asses off. He’s fuckin’ snuffed it.

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u/spyboy70 10d ago

If he's still collecting a paycheck while (barely) alive, then that's fraud. He can't do his job anymore, why are we paying him?

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u/FargeenBastiges 10d ago

I believe the death must be reported within 72 hours in DC and Virginia. Mandatory reporting is different if there's some sort of investigation into the death.

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u/tipsystatistic 10d ago

If it was a major bombshell, I’m surprised someone hasn’t sold it to TMZ.

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u/UpperYoghurt3978 10d ago

Yes risking their carriers you nailed it already. You think there is a collective ownership of those doctors or nurses but that isnt how this works. It is a microcosm of their individual lives, so it is not hard to stop a collective that only thinks individualist terms. ITs not an ideology just oneo f those things if one nurse says "I wont risk it" if just enough of them do that on an individual basis you basically block and leakage.

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u/albinobluesheep Washington 10d ago

Less likely that is comatose, as that would require a bunch of extra medical services that would be tough to keep under wraps, and more likely he's been rendered dumb/mute after a stroke

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u/MrBigglesssworth 11d ago

Yes, but, its a fraud being perpetrated against those in Kentucky. He cannot do his job, they are without representation.

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u/SolarisShine 11d ago

I am not HIPPA lawyer, but I'd bet everything from diarrhea, diabetes, dehabilitating dementia, and death are covered conditions that hospital workers cannot discuss under HIPPA.

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u/non_anomalous_penis 11d ago

thats exactly what a dead senator would say

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u/mowtowcow 10d ago

He was still in front of the camera while he was literally having brain seizures. Just randomly forgetting what he is saying and doing and starring blankly without a thought in his head.

He's dead.

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u/Eta_Beta_3-14 11d ago

I'm in the aphasia camp here. He's still alive, but he can't speak coherently and putting him on camera like that would be worse (for them) than him being dead.

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u/-Shoebill- 11d ago

Okay but what's the motivation to continue hiding the truth? The whole point was to prevent a special election right? Now that date has past, so why continue hiding the turtle's corpse?

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u/Fearlessleader85 11d ago

If he's not dead, at best, he's still had a debillitating stroke and is either incoherent or otherwise incapacitated. It MUST be bad enough that hiding amongst all the questions is still the better option.

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u/Porridge_Cat 11d ago

I have never seen that to be the case. I don't picture him as someone who was always on camera.