Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was blasted by attendees at a speech in Kentucky, days after he froze up while speaking at a Capitol Hill press conference.
During his speech at the Fancy Farm picnic, a key political event for McConnell, the 81-year-old Republican leader was met with some fiery chants. “Shame on you,” “Ditch Mitch,” “Retire,” and “Lost the Senate” were among the shouted slogans heard during the speech.
McConnell tried to play it cool but was unable to because the crowd did not allow him to.
“This is my 28th Fancy Farm, and I want to assure you it’s not my last,” McConnell said at the opening of his speech. “My friends, I’ll be honest, it’s not hard for Republicans to look good these days,” he remarked to the angry crowd. In video footage, he can barely be heard because of the roaring chants of “Retire.”
Mitch McConnell is booed, and drowned out by chants of “retire, retire, retire”, for five minutes straight as he tries to talk to his own constituents in Kentucky. pic.twitter.com/zyZIHLJaoy
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) August 7, 2023
Former President Donald Trump celebrated McConnell getting heckled. Notably, Trump has called for McConnell to step down from his position and be replaced by someone more competent. On Truth Social, Trump mocked McConnell by quoting the chants he was met with during his speech in Kentucky.
‘I AGREE! ‘BOOOOO—RETIRE, RETIRE, RETIRE—BOOOOO!!!” the former president wrote on Truth Social while including a clip of the event.
Trump has also accused McConnell of being a “pawn” for the Democratic Party. In a Truth Social post dating back to August 2022, the former president said, “Mitch McConnell is not an Opposition Leader, he is a pawn for the Democrats to get whatever they want. He is afraid of them, and will not do what has to be done. A new Republican Leader in the Senate should be picked immediately!”
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The chants of “Retire” came after new questions arose about McConnell’s health and ability to serve. The Senate minority leader was seen freezing midsentence during a press conference on Capitol Hill less than two weeks earlier. McConnell froze for about 20 seconds before being led away by Sen. John Barrasso. “We’re on a path to finishing the NDAA this week. There’s been good bipartisan cooperation, and a string of —,” McConnell said, before staring out into the distance.
“Are you good, Mitch?” Sen. Joni Ernst asked McConnell.
“Anything else you want to say or should we just go back to your office?” Senate GOP Conference Chairman John Barrasso asked.
🚨BREAKING: Mitch McConnell freezes up at a press conference. Reason unknown.
— Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) July 26, 2023
McConnell later returned to the presser and claimed that he was “fine.” Reporters asked him whether he felt he could still perform his job adequately.
“You’re fine, you’re fully able to do your job?” CNN chief correspondent Manu Raju pressed.
“Yep,” McConnell replied, before taking further questions regarding Hunter Biden and his corrupt foreign business dealings.
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