Scott Jennings urged to call Mitch McConnell on TV. See his response

After speaking to Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell from the hospital this week, Scott Jennings was pressed about the conversation and even asked to call the politician during a live TV appearance.

Jennings, a commentator and longtime McConnell adviser, wrote on July 7: Publish on X He said he spoke with McConnell for about 20 minutes that morning.

“He is still recovering in the hospital,” Jennings wrote. “We talked for about 20 minutes… We talked about IRAN, UKRAINE, the developing situation in MAINE, my visit to the Turkish Presidential Library and even a little Senate history. I said we wanted to see him back in action as soon as possible.”

Jennings appeared hours later CNN’s “Arena” program Other guests and host Kasie Hunt pressed him for more details about the conversation.

McConnell, 84, has been hospitalized since June 14. His office did not disclose what he was being treated for. Speculations about his health.

Scott Jennings addresses ‘crazy’ rumors about Mitch McConnell

During an appearance on “The Arena,” Jennings offered few details about McConnell’s hospitalization beyond emphasizing his “desire to keep everything private.”

When Hunt asked him to call McConnell live, Jennings laughed and said: “I wasn’t expecting him to call this morning, to be honest, so when the phone rang and I was able to talk to him, I was honestly pretty grateful.”

Jennings also addressed theories about McConnell’s health.

“All the rumors that he was dead or brain dead or his body was hidden somewhere, I saw all kinds of crazy things on the internet,” Jennings said. “This is absolutely not true because he picked up the phone and called me.”

McConnell speaks to Senate colleagues

In addition to Jennings, some of McConnell’s colleagues in the Senate also said they had spoken with the 84-year-old man recently.

Aides confirmed that both Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, and Senate Majority Rep. John Barrasso, R-Wyoming, spoke with McConnell on July 6 and 7, respectively.

A Thune spokesman said in a statement that on July 6, Thune spoke with McConnell about a variety of issues, including national security, and that the conversation was “long and comprehensive.”

The next day, Barrasso spoke with McConnell for about 20 minutes, discussing topics such as upcoming Senate proceedings and the latest developments. Supreme Court News and the Maine Senate race, according to Barrasso spokeswoman Kate Noyes.

“Senator McConnell has been fully engaged and can’t wait to get back to the Senate,” Noyes said.

The latest on Mitch McConnell’s hospitalization

McConnell was hospitalized on the morning of June 14, spokesman David Popp confirmed. His office did not provide further details about the reason for his hospitalization.

On the morning of June 14, audio from emergency calls to an address where McConnell was identified as a longtime resident of Washington, D.C., showed that someone at the scene was unconscious. Another call a few minutes later said someone was having a “heart attack.”

McConnell’s office neither confirmed nor denied whether the calls were related to the longtime senator when asked for comment on the audio by USA TODAY on July 1.

On July 1, McConnell’s aides also released a statement saying he “continues to improve and is working closely with his staff on Kentucky and Senate issues while the Senate is out of session.” They also shared the same statement in response to USA TODAY’s request for comment on July 7.

Contributed by: Zachary Schermele

Melina Khan is USA TODAY’s national trends reporter. Follow him on X @melinakh and Instagram @bymelinakhan.

This article first appeared on USA TODAY: Scott Jennings suggested calling Mitch McConnell on television. See your answer