McConnell vows to remain Senate GOP leader amid freeze ups, calls to resign

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell on Wednesday vowed to remain the leader of the GOP conference in the upper chamber of Congress in the face of pressure to resign amid repeated on-camera freeze ups.

"I’m going to finish my term as leader and I’m going to finish my Senate term," the Kentucky lawmaker told reporters.

McConnell, 81, recently froze on camera for more than 30 seconds in the face of a question about seeking reelection in 2026. He experienced a comparable freeze on Capitol Hill in July.

His more recent freeze prompted numerous calls for his resignation, including from legacy conservative outlets such as the National Review.

"Mitch McConnell is truly a legend of the U.S. Senate. He’s been one of the most effective leaders in memory, he deeply understands and cares about the institution, and he’s had an outsized influence on his party for decades now," the magazine's editors wrote. "But the time has come for the Kentucky senator, after his long, impressive run, to make the decision to step aside from leadership."

President Joe Biden, who himself has faced scrutiny of his health and fitness for office, has defended McConnell, insisting that the freeze-ups are likely the product of a concussion he endured from an earlier fall.

The Capitol physician, Dr. Brian Monahan, has cleared the Kentucky lawmaker to return to work, saying "[o]ccasional lightheadedness is not uncommon in concussion recovery and can also be expected as a result of dehydration."

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.