![\"Robert](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Robert_Mackey.png\")
Robert Mackey<\/p>\nKey events<\/p>\n
Robert Mackey<\/p>\n
The US senator Mitch McConnell<\/a> on Sunday revealed for the first time that a fall led to his hospitalization, breaking the silence about the Kentucky Republican\u2019s condition after weeks of mounting speculation about his health.<\/p>\n McConnell, 84, said in a statement that he has undergone a battery of tests as doctors try to determine what led to his fall. He explained the long silence<\/a> about his condition by saying that \u201cfolks of my generation often hesitate to share the vulnerability that comes with growing older\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cEven in the public eye, I feel that same instinct \u2013 I can\u2019t help it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n McConnell said he is now in a rehabilitation center and will not be returning to the Senate \u201cquite yet\u201d. He said he continues to work with his staff on Senate business in the meantime.<\/p>\n The statement included a smiling picture of McConnell with his wife, Elaine Chao, a tacit response to speculation online that he had died or was incapacitated. McConnell held a copy of Sunday\u2019s Washington Post sports section<\/a> in his hand.<\/p>\n Sunday\u2019s statement came after his hospitalization<\/a> on 14 June. McConnell\u2019s office for weeks provided little information, insisting only that he was \u201creceiving excellent care\u201d and recovering.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Graham\u2019s death triggers a scramble to replace him \u2013 what happens next? South Carolina\u2019s governor, Henry McMaster, has the political decision of a lifetime with the unexpected death in office of Senator Lindsey Graham. The Republican governor and loyalist of Donald Trump<\/a> will appoint a new senator to serve out the remainder of Graham\u2019s term, which ends on 3 January.<\/p>\n Whoever McMaster appoints will likely have a leg up in a special primary election on 11 August to fill Graham\u2019s place on the November ballot, which he won despite facing five challengers from his party in June. That election calendar favors candidates with wide name recognition and deep institutional support.<\/p>\n The candidate would still run against Democratic nominee Annie Andrews, a pediatrician who gained significant support in the red state, but still faces an uphill challenge.<\/p>\n Congressman Joe Wilson has reportedly expressed interest in the seat. Of the Republican delegation to Washington, Wilson is the longest tenured. He has represented South Carolina\u2019s second congressional district since 2001, and his activism within the state\u2019s Republican party predates its dominance in the state\u2019s politics.<\/p>\n \u201cWith the passing of Senator Lindsay Graham he will always be cherished as an American Patriot tireless for peace through strength successful defeating totalitarians,\u201d Wilson wrote<\/a> on X. \u201cAll three generations of the Wilson family extend deepest sympathy and appreciation of his dedicated service.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Lawmakers return to Congress as Graham’s death triggers scramble to replace him<\/p>\n Hello and welcome to the US politics<\/a> live blog.<\/p>\n Republican lawmakers return to the Capitol this week after the unexpected death in office of Lindsey Graham, as the party seeks to appoint a new senator to see out his term.<\/p>\n Lawmakers from both parties are eager to highlight before voters legislative victories ahead of the midterms, where control of Congress is at stake.<\/p>\n But for Senate Republicans<\/a>, who are already navigating an array of demands from Trump, their agenda grew further complicated over the weekend with the death of Lindsey Graham, the budget committee chair who is a key player in negotiating a party line bill to fund additional defense spending and other priorities outlined by the president.<\/p>\n South Carolina governor Henry McMaster is tasked with appointing a new senator to serve out the remainder of Graham\u2019s term, which ends on 3 January. The appointment is expected to be announced in a matter of days.<\/p>\n Whoever is chosen will likely have a leg up in a special primary election on 11 August to fill Graham\u2019s place on the November ballot, which he won despite facing five challengers from his party in June.<\/p>\n The candidate would still run against Democratic nominee Annie Andrews, a pediatrician who gained significant support in the red state, but still faces an uphill challenge.<\/p>\n It means that together with the ongoing absence of Mitch McConnell for unexplained health issues, Senate Republicans will have to navigate a majority that\u2019s down two members.<\/p>\n Read the full story here:<\/p>\n In other developments:<\/p>\n The Senate judiciary committee has scheduled two days of confirmation hearings for Todd Blanche, the acting attorney general Trump has nominated to the post, though it was unclear if the death of Graham, who served on the committee, will affect the schedule. The intelligence committee has separately announced that the confirmation of Clayton is back on.<\/p>\n Republicans in both chambers remain confounded by Trump\u2019s renewed fixation on the Save America Act, which would ban mail-in ballots and impose new rules on voting nationwide. The measure, a version of which was approved<\/a> by the House of Representatives earlier this year almost entirely with Republican votes, has no path through the Senate, where it faces opposition from Democrats and some in the GOP.<\/p>\n Ro Khanna accused the Israeli government and military of \u201clying\u201d on Sunday about the US congressman\u2019s detention by armed settlers and Israeli soldiers<\/a> during a recent visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank. Khanna \u2013 a California Democrat \u2013 had posted video evidence on social media of Israeli settlers and soldiers blocking the path of his convoy on Wednesday in the South Hebron hills, near the village of Zanuta, where Israelis have driven Palestinians from their homes in what Amnesty International calls<\/a> a government-backed \u201cethnic cleansing campaign\u201d.<\/p>\n![\"George](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/George-Chidi.jpg\")
George Chidi<\/p>\n