A man who claims he was sent to check on Mitch McConnell’s Washington, D.C. home has deepened the mystery surrounding his health.
Independent journalists Nicholas Ballasy and Desirée Townsend reported that a man was seen leaving the Kentucky senator’s residence on Wednesday afternoon.
When asked about his relation to McConnell, the man said he worked at his residence. He confirmed he did not work for the senator’s office nor was he a family member.
“I’m only watching the house, make sure everything’s fine there,” he said. “They just gave me a key [to] check the house, that’s it.”
When pressed further about whether he had seen Elaine Chao, McConnell’s wife, the man said he “didn’t know anything” because nobody had given him any information apart from instructions to check on the house.
“I haven’t seen her,” he said of Chao.
The man’s vehicle had a Kentucky license plate and what appeared to be a red congressional placard displayed on the dashboard, according to Townsend.
McConnell’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment and questions about the man’s identity.
The 84-year-old Republican stalwart was hospitalized after he was found unconscious in his home on June 14.
He may have suffered a heart attack, according to an emergency personnel call first obtained by Townsend. The June 14 call detailed an emergency dispatch to McConnell’s D.C. home, where first responders were told of “CPR in progress” due to “cardiac arrest.”
McConnell’s office has kept a tight lid on his health, frequently reusing its July 2 statement that read, “Senator McConnell appreciates the outpouring of support he’s receiving while he continues his recovery in the hospital. The Senator continues to improve, and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate matters while the Senate is out of session.”
McConnell’s staff is led by his longtime, camera-shy aide Terry Carmack, who is on track to earn more than $226,000 this year.
Chao, McConnell’s wife of three decades, has also been MIA. She served as transportation secretary in the first Trump administration.
Chao, 73, raised eyebrows when she traveled to Beijing, China and met with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng just days after he husband was hospitalized.
Photos circulating in Chinese media showed Chao sitting across from Zheng on June 17, reportedly discussing efforts to strengthen China–U.S. relations.
On Tuesday, she finally addressed McConnell’s health, telling the Daily Beast that her ailing husband’s health “did not warrant an immediate return.”
“The secretary was on a long-planned trip in China to support her family’s philanthropic endeavors,” a spokesperson for Chao said. “During the trip, she met with a number of people, including the U.S. ambassador. The Senator’s health did not warrant an immediate return to the U.S.”
The spokesperson also said that Chao had returned to the U.S. Her team did not answer the Daily Beast’s questions about McConnell’s condition, when exactly she returned to the U.S., or who had found her husband on the day he was hospitalized.
