Why This Newspaper's 'Pre-Death Obituary' of Mitch McConnell is Stirring Controversy

A columnist at Kentucky's largest newspaper has published what he called a "pre-obituary" of Senator Mitch McConnell, accusing the former Republican Majority Leader of dismantling civil rights protections he once championed and of enabling President Donald Trump despite privately calling him "stupid" and a "despicable human being."

Joseph Gerth, a columnist for the Louisville Courier Journal, wrote in a piece published Wednesday that he decided to lay out his assessment of McConnell's career even though the 84-year-old senator is still alive, rather than wait for an actual obituary.

"With McConnell allegedly on the mend, I figured I'd go ahead and tell you what I think about McConnell now, when no one can complain, 'How dare you write that about a dead guy?' " Gerth wrote.

Gerth said the idea was prompted by the death of longtime Republican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham on July 11, after which he said online criticism of Graham was frequently met with objections that it was inappropriate to speak ill of someone who had just died.

...

In the column, Gerth compared McConnell to former President Richard Nixon, writing that McConnell "is every bit the detestable figure that Nixon was," but that unlike Nixon, McConnell "never paid for his sins."

Gerth pointed to McConnell's decision to block President Barack Obama's nomination of Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court in 2016, when the senator argued that voters should decide the appointment in a presidential election year, followed by his later push to confirm Amy Coney Barrett just eight days before the 2020 White House vote.

Gerth wrote that the shift on the court "destroyed the court's credibility with the American people," citing polling showing the court's approval rating has fallen from 58 percent in July 2020 to 36 percent in a recent Economist/YouGov survey.

McConnell's Recent Health Timeline

The lengthy absence of McConnell from public view has sparked widespread speculation about the condition of the Kentucky Republican while fueling calls for changes in the health disclosure requirements to which members of Congress are subject.

McConnell has not been seen publicly for weeks and has missed every roll call vote in the Senate since June 11, according to GovTrack.us.

The office of the 84-year-old McConnell released a photo of him in a hospital bed in mid-July, as well as a statement saying the absence was a result of a fall and pneumonia, but that picture has done little to quell suspicions regarding his health and whereabouts. McConnell has suffered several falls and health scares in recent years.

Mitch McConnell's Career in Congress

Mitch McConnell was first elected to the Senate in 1984, defeating an incumbent Democrat and becoming the first Republican to win a statewide race in Kentucky since 1968. He went on to win reelection six times, becoming the state's longest-serving senator.

His political journey began with a record that looked very different from the one he would build in Washington. As a young man, McConnell attended civil rights rallies and interned for Republican Senator John Sherman Cooper. In his memoir, The Long Game, McConnell recalled watching President Lyndon Johnson sign the Voting Rights Act into law, describing the moment as one that "overwhelmed" him.

Decades later, McConnell became one of the most powerful Republicans in Washington. He led the Senate Republican conference for years, moving between majority and minority leader as control of the chamber changed hands.

His tenure included major legislative victories, including helping pass Trump's 2017 tax reform bill and sponsoring 31 bills that became law.

But his relationship with Trump was complicated.

McConnell backed Trump's agenda and three Supreme Court confirmations, but the alliance fractured after the 2020 election. He recognized Joe Biden's victory and blamed Trump for the January 6 riot at the Capitol, though he did not vote to convict the president following his second impeachment.

Despite Trump repeatedly lashing out at the senator, McConnell endorsed his 2024 campaign. On his 83rd birthday, February 20, 2025, McConnell announced that he would not seek an eighth Senate term.

McConnell Absence Sparks Push To Change Congress Rules

The prolonged absence of McConnell and several lawmakers has catalyzed into a wider debate over whether Congress should implement mandatory health disclosure rules for its members.

On July 14, Democratic Representative Ritchie Torres said he would be introducing legislation requiring lawmakers to file a "public notice" explaining any "extended absence from voting."

Ritchie Torres

...

Under the Duty of Transparency Act, members would need to notify constituents that they will be absent, as well as "roughly how long they expect to be away, and whether they are still able to perform their official duties" during this time.

Under current House and Senate rules, members of Congress are typically not required to publicly state why they may have missed votes, nor inform constituents how much time they could miss or any health-related issues.

Some members, however, have voluntarily provided such information. Democratic Senator John Fetterman’s office, for example, issued periodic updates on his condition after he was hospitalized for depression in early 2023, during which he missed dozens of Senate roll-call votes.

Full List of Senators Beyond Retirement Age

The monthlong hospitalization of McConnell and the sudden death of Graham have renewed scrutiny of the advanced ages in Congress' upper chamber, where the average member is now 65 and more than one-third are 70 or older.

Together, the two cases have put a spotlight on an institution in which lawmakers routinely serve into their 80s and 90s, with questions about fitness for office rarely being raised until a health crisis forces the issue.

Of the 99 sitting senators, the average age is 65.1 and the median is 66, according to a Newsweek analysis of legislator birth records.

Thirty-six senators are 70 or older, eight are 80 or older, and one, Senator Chuck Grassley, an Iowa Republican, is 92. Grassley, third in line to the presidency as Senate president pro tempore, leads the Judiciary Committee and has pointed to his continued corn farming as evidence that he remains fit for office.

Broken into brackets, the chamber's composition is eight senators in their 40s, 22 in their 50s, 33 in their 60s, 28 in their 70s, seven in their 80s and Grassley alone in his 90s.

The two parties are close to even on age. Republicans average 64.9 years old among their 52 senators, while Democrats average 64.6 among 45. The gap widens at the higher ages, where Republicans hold 17 seats among senators in their 70s to Democrats' 11.

Full List: Senators 70 and Older

Thirty-six of the Senate's 99 members are 70 or older, more than one-third of the chamber. Here is each one, ranked from oldest to youngest:

Sheldon Whitehouse, 70, Democrat, Rhode Island
Chuck Grassley, 92, Republican, Iowa
Bernie Sanders, 84, independent, Vermont
Mitch McConnell, 84, Republican, Kentucky
James E. Risch, 83, Republican, Idaho
Angus S. King, Jr., 82, independent, Maine
Richard J. Durbin, 81, Democrat, Illinois
Richard Blumenthal, 80, Democrat, Connecticut
Edward J. Markey, 80, Democrat, Massachusetts
Jeanne Shaheen, 79, Democrat, New Hampshire
Peter Welch, 79, Democrat, Vermont
Mazie K. Hirono, 78, Democrat, Hawaii
Ron Wyden, 77, Democrat, Oregon
Elizabeth Warren, 77, Democrat, Massachusetts
Jack Reed, 76, Democrat, Rhode Island
Roger F. Wicker, 75, Republican, Mississippi
John Boozman, 75, Republican, Arkansas
Mike Crapo, 75, Republican, Idaho
Patty Murray, 75, Democrat, Washington
Charles E. Schumer, 75, Democrat, New York
Deb Fischer, 75, Republican, Nebraska
James C. Justice, 75, Republican, West Virginia
John Cornyn, 74, Republican, Texas
Marsha Blackburn, 74, Republican, Tennessee
John Kennedy, 74, Republican, Louisiana
John W. Hickenlooper, 74, Democrat, Colorado
John Barrasso, 73, Republican, Wyoming
Susan M. Collins, 73, Republican, Maine
Rick Scott, 73, Republican, Florida
Shelley Moore Capito, 72, Republican, West Virginia
Jerry Moran, 72, Republican, Kansas
Mark R. Warner, 71, Democrat, Virginia
Ron Johnson, 71, Republican, Wisconsin
Mike Rounds, 71, Republican, South Dakota
Cynthia M. Lummis, 71, Republican, Wyoming
Tommy Tuberville, 71, Republican, Alabama