GOP Sen. Capito Offers New Update on Mitch McConnell
West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito delivered the latest assessment of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s recovery Monday.
Capito told reporters that a recent visitor found the longtime Kentucky Republican sharp and focused solely on building his physical strength after more than six weeks away from the Capitol.
Video journalist Nicholas Ballasy approached Capito in a Capitol hallway over the weekend and asked directly: “Do you have any idea what’s going on with McConnell? What his condition is right now? Have you heard an update?”
Capito replied: “I mean, I think, obviously, the public information, the information that I have, is that Senator McConnell is recovering and is, uh, healing, and is in a, uh, rehabilitation hospital. I talked with somebody yesterday who visited him, and said that he’s clear-minded and he just needs to get stronger.”
Pressed on whether she planned to visit the senator herself, Capito said she “might wait until he asks for visitors.”
Capito added, “I think, you know, anyone who’s been in the hospital or in a rehab facility, um, being visited, I think, is a pretty sensitive topic.”
The comments come as McConnell’s office continues to emphasize steady progress.
On Saturday, spokesman David Popp told The Washington Post that “the Senator continues to meet with staff regarding Senate and Kentucky business, including discussions on defense appropriations, foreign policy, the farm bill, constituent services, and constituent federal grant requests.”
Popp added, “As the Senator continues to improve in rehab, we will be sure to keep you updated.”
McConnell, 84, has not appeared publicly since mid-June, fueling wild online speculation that Republican leaders have repeatedly pushed back against.
Earlier this month, Senate Majority Leader John Thune confirmed a lengthy phone conversation with McConnell covering national security issues.
Majority Whip John Barrasso’s office said the two spoke for about 20 minutes and that McConnell “was fully engaged and is eager to get back to the Senate.”
Longtime McConnell ally and commentator Scott Jennings also reported a nearly 20-minute call in which the senator discussed Iran, Ukraine, Maine politics, and Senate history.
Those direct conversations from senior Republicans stand in contrast to those from some more junior colleagues, who have said they have not spoken with him personally.
Capito’s secondhand account from a visitor remains the most recent firsthand-adjacent report available.
The sequence of events began June 14, when McConnell was admitted to a Washington-area hospital after a fall at his home left him briefly unconscious.
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On July 2, his office said he “continues to improve” while working with staff on Kentucky and Senate matters.
Speculation intensified online and in some media outlets, prompting Kentucky’s Democratic governor to demand more transparency publicly.
On July 12, McConnell broke his silence with a detailed personal statement and a photo alongside his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao.
He explained that childhood polio had left him with lifelong mobility challenges that “haven’t exactly gotten easier to manage with age.”
The fall, he said, left him briefly unconscious but produced no broken bones, concussion, heart attack, stroke, tumors, or hemorrhages.
While hospitalized, he developed a mild case of pneumonia that responded to antibiotics. He had since moved to a rehabilitation center “where I’ll keep regaining my strength.”
A statement from the Office of the Attending Physician confirmed the medical findings and noted that the remainder of his care focused on physical therapy to reduce future fall risk.
McConnell made clear doctors had not yet cleared him to return to the Senate floor but stressed he continued working closely with legislative and constituent staff.
McConnell, who is retiring at the end of his current term in January 2027, has used the episode to underscore his determination to finish the job voters sent him to do
BREAKING: Dolly Parton’s Cause Of Death Revealed: ‘Brief Battle’
Dolly Parton’s death came after a brief battle with cancer, her representatives revealed Tuesday.
The country music legend died Aug. 25 at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville. She was 80.
Parton had been admitted to the cancer center Friday, four days before her death. Her representatives confirmed the cancer diagnosis in a statement to PEOPLE but did not disclose what type she had.
“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched. Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand,” the statement read.
“Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly’s unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact. After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones,” the statement concluded.
The “Jolene” singer had also been dealing with kidney and autoimmune issues before her death, PEOPLE previously reported.
Just days earlier, Dolly Parton opened up about her declining health and acknowledged that she had put off addressing some medical issues while caring for her husband, Carl.
“As I’ve shared in video messages throughout the past year, I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over [my husband] Carl. You know, this isn’t the first time I’ve had to manage something like this. Back in the early ’80s, I was down for several months with female issues, and I was struggling with my weight at the time too, so it’s not like I haven’t been through hard times with my health,” Parton told PEOPLE.
Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced her death in an Instagram video Tuesday on behalf of the Parton and Owens family.
“My name is Bryan Seaver, son of Cassie Parton, and I’m representing the Parton and Owens family today announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, Sister, Sis and Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next,” he says in the video.
Seaver, who served as Parton’s head of security for more than two decades, said she had asked him years earlier to deliver the announcement.
“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality,” he continued. “As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now.”
Seaver said the moment brought immense pride and heartbreak, but he took comfort in his faith that Parton had been reunited with Carl and other loved ones.
Seaver added: “It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly. Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless othe
