Republican Senator provides pre-dawn update on Mitch McConnell

A Republican senator provided an update on Sen. Mitch McConnell's condition early Thursday morning.

Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) spoke with independent journalist Nicholas Ballasy about McConnell in an X video that went live just before 1:30 a.m.

"He lives next door to me," Tuberville said. "He's still in the hospital, he's doing rehab."

Tuberville said it was likely McConnell's continued absence could hold up votes on President Donald Trump's agenda, and he was asked whether he was surprised the Kentucky Republican's team had not released a video to put doubts to rest.

Tuberville looked directly into the camera with a tight smile as he said that, seemingly indicating that he shared concerns about the situation.

The 84-year-old McConnell hasn't appeared on video since his hospitalization, and speculation about the severity of his condition has grown as his office has offered little beyond repeated boilerplate statements.

His longtime aide Terry Carmack has largely avoided questions on the matter, and his office released a photo on July 12 showing him sitting upright in a hospital bed with his wife, Elaine Chao, holding a copy of that day's Washington Post.

A second, similar photo followed on July 27, showing McConnell smiling in a chair beside Chao, paired with a statement saying he was "working hard to get back to my full schedule." Still, no video of him speaking or no images of him standing have surfaced — fueling further doubts about his condition.

Tuberville himself called on McConnell's office to release video weeks ago, telling Ballasy on July 21, "Somebody needs to come out and put a little video out. We didn't get any information today in our luncheon. I don't know why, what's going on, but that's not my business; that's leadership's business, and we wish him well."

At the time, Tuberville said he expected McConnell would need to return before the Senate's five-week August recess, which begins Friday, and he told Ballasy this week that the Kentucky Republican could hold up some votes, including the confirmation of Todd Blanche as attorney general.

"Some of them will be pushed to a later date," Tuberville said. "You don't put one up unless you got the votes."