Kentucky governor tells Sen. Mitch McConnell to prove he can continue serving or resign

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear is escalating his calls for transparency surrounding Sen. Mitch McConnell’s health, demanding Kentucky’s senior senator prove he is capable of continuing to serve or step down from office.

In two letters sent Monday, one addressed to McConnell and another to Senate Majority Leader John Thune, Beshear questioned whether McConnell is able to perform his duties after more than six weeks away from the Senate.

“I am addressing this letter to Senator McConnell under the assumption that he is capable of reading and responding verbally, and not incapacitated by means of consciousness or cognition,” Beshear wrote in his letter.

He added that if McConnell is unable to respond, his Senate staff should “be honest and transparent with the people of Kentucky.”

Beshear noted, that at the time, it had been 43 days since news of McConnell’s hospitalization, saying the senator has cast no Senate votes, participated in no official activities and, aside from two photographs and accompanying written statements, has not directly addressed Kentuckians.

The governor also criticized the limited information released by McConnell’s office, saying his physician’s statements have not answered whether the senator can “speak, reason, or carry out his duties as a senator.”

“I understand anyone’s desire for privacy, but when you run for office and serve as one of a state’s two U.S. senators, you willingly abdicate much of your personal privacy,” Beshear wrote. “That’s the deal, and we all know it when we run.”

In a separate letter to Thune, Beshear asked the Senate majority leader to investigate McConnell’s condition if he doesn’t show that he is capable of serving.

Beshear wrote that, based on his administration’s research, a Senate vacancy occurs only when a senator dies, resigns or is expelled by a vote of the Senate.

He urged Thune to look into McConnell’s condition, report the findings to the public and “begin the process if warranted.”

Beshear concluded by saying, “Kentuckians are just asking Senator McConnell to be honest.”

McConnell’s office said Monday he is undergoing intensive physical therapy and intends to return to his full Senate schedule when his doctors clear him to do so.