Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) reaches out to help Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) after McConnell froze and stopped talking at the microphones during a news conference after a lunch meeting with Senate Republicans U.S. Capitol 26, 2023 in Washington, DC.
WASHINGTON — Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell abruptly froze and was briefly unable to speak at a Senate press conference Wednesday, prompting his colleagues to rush in and help him walk a few feet away from the cameras.
The chilling moments came during the Senate GOP leadership's weekly press conference in the Capitol, where McConnell, 81, was standing at a lectern when he fell silent all of a sudden.
After a few minutes, McConnell returned to the lectern and finished the press conference.
This potential leadership vacuum was on stark display Wednesday when a reporter asked McConnell whether he had "anybody in mind to replace you when you're no longer conference leader?"
Persons:
Sen, John Barrasso, Mitch McConnell, McConnell, John Thune, Barrasso, Iowa Republican Joni Ernst, Frank Thorp
Organizations:
Republicans U.S, Capitol, WASHINGTON, GOP, Kentucky Republican, Iowa Republican, NBC, Republican, Senate, White
Locations:
Washington , DC, WASHINGTON —, Washington