Rand Paul on McConnell freeze-ups: ‘It doesn’t look like dehydration to me’

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) is calling into question the Capitol physician’s diagnosis of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell’s (R-Ky.) latest freeze-up, saying it does not appear to look like dehydration.

“I’ve practiced medicine for 25 years, and it doesn’t look like dehydration to me,” he told a group of reporters Tuesday. “It looks like a focal neurologic event.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s incapacitating, doesn’t mean he can’t serve,” Paul continued. “But it means that somebody ought to wake up and say, ‘Wow, this looks like a seizure.’”

McConnell froze for the second time in recent months last week after a reporter in his home state asked about potential reelection plans, which sparked concerns about his health. The senator’s office released a letter from Dr. Brian Monahan, the Capitol’s attending physician, Tuesday that outlined the results of his exam following the incident.

“There is no evidence that you have a seizure disorder or that you experienced a stroke, TIA or movement disorder such as Parkinson’s disease,” Monahan said.

In a separate letter, released last week, Monahan said McConnell was “medically clear” to continue with his planned schedule after the incident. He also noted that it “is not uncommon in concussion recovery and can also be expected as a result of dehydration.”

McConnell, 81, suffered a concussion and a rib fracture in March after he fell at a private dinner in Washington, D.C. He was hospitalized and checked into an inpatient rehabilitation facility and returned to work in April.

Other Senate Republicans rallied around McConnell on Tuesday, saying that he still has their support as leader. No GOP senator has called on McConnell to step down, but Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green (R-Ga.) said that he is “not fit for office.”