After a disturbing period of silence as he stood at the podium during a press briefing Wednesday, Senate Minority Leader on Friday restated his intention to stay in office and brushed off concerns about ongoing health issues, USA Today reports. “Leader McConnell appreciates the continued support of his colleagues, and plans to serve his full term in the job they overwhelmingly elected him to do,” a spokesman told the outlet.
McConnell stood silent and motionless at the podium after stopping mid-sentence during a Wednesday briefing. He was escorted away by colleagues and reportedly went to his office to recover. He reappeared at the briefing minutes later, but did not directly address the episode.
Following the incident at the Capitol, reports of other medically-related incidents were disclosed in the press that had previously been unknown, including a July 14th incident where McConnell reportedly “face planted” while deplaning from a flight at Reagan National Airport. He also fell during a March fundraiser at a DC hotel which resulted in a concussion the kept him from the Senate for a month.