Kay Granger's disappearance from Congress prompts fresh debate over term limits

One senator recently claimed that Texas GOP Rep. Kay Granger's six-month disappearance from Congress made a "compelling case for term limits," after she was reportedly found in a memory care facility last week. 

Social media erupted this week after The Dallas Express reported on Friday that Granger was in a memory care facility after being found wandering through her neighborhood while seemingly lost and confused.

Granger, 81, who was first elected to the House in 1996, has not cast a vote in Washington since July.

Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have now raised concerns over the mental acuity of some political leaders that they believe would be resolved with term limits or mental fitness tests.

The topic has also come up with scrutiny of President Joe Biden.

Democratic California Rep. Ro Khanna on Sunday claimed Congress has a "sclerotic gerontocracy," that rewards people for being in the chamber longer instead of rewarding lawmakers for their ideas.

"We need term limits," he wrote in a post on X. "We need to get big money out of politics so a new generation of Americans can run and serve."

Republican Utah Sen. Mike Lee on Sunday also claimed Granger's absence made a "compelling case" for term limits, and that her staff must have known about her mental acuity.  

"A lot of people must have known," he insisted in a post on X. "She hadn’t done her job in a long time. Where was Rep. Kay Granger’s staff? They were covering for her dementia. Not as much to protect Rep. Granger but so *her staff* could stay in power. Why does this sound familiar?"

The news comes as Granger heads into retirement from Congress at the end of the current term, which closes out a 30-year career.

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just the News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.