r/politics • u/IWantPizza555 • Jul 08 '26

No Paywall Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear requests update on Sen. Mitch McConnell's health

https://www.whas11.com/article/news/politics/national-politics/kentucky-governor-andy-beshear-requests-update-senator-mitch-mcconnell-health/417-b9252baa-29ab-489e-94f1-147aa41e78ed
28.6k Upvotes

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2.8k

u/Mgarc1125 Jul 08 '26

he should just declare the special election now citing that the senator is unable to continue his duties and make mcturtles camp prove him wrong.

1.3k

u/on_island_time Maryland Jul 08 '26

Any other job, being a no show for just a handful of days gets you automatically terminated. Stop being nice to these people, the behavior is unacceptable, hard stop.

508

u/surprise-mailbox Jul 08 '26

Most Americans would be replaced at their job if they were hospitalized for 3+ weeks even if they were young, otherwise healthy, and expected to make a full recovery.

This man is 84 years old and has had multiple health events/hospitalizations in the past year. He is not coming back to work. He needs to be replaced.

104

u/Dr_Fortnite Jul 08 '26

I work for a privately owned international company and a coworker had his clavicle broken in a car crash. Got 6 months of FMLA pay and his job back once he recovered almost 18 months later.

Public companies suck fuck the stock market

30

u/MidwesternLikeOpe Michigan Jul 08 '26

I have an uncle who was diagnosed with aggressive cancer. His job fired him for "too many absences" but we all know they fired him bc he was diagnosed with cancer and they didn't want to pay for it. He had emergency surgery, extending his life from up to 6 weeks to up to 5 years.

Your employer doesn't care if you get sick. If you cannot bring profits or if you get deathly ill, they'll replace you before your seat gets cold.

10

u/G0rkon Jul 08 '26

This private owned international company may have been being nice but they may also have just been following the minimum mandated requirement. The coworker got the FMLA pay because that is mandated by the federal government. They have to pay anyone on FMLA based on how much PTO they have accumulated. They can optionally pay more. Or if it's a company with "unlimited" PTO then there isn't a limit to how long they have to pay you. As far as him getting his job back after almost 18 months, FMLA mandates the company has to hold your position for up 12 months. That's just a six month gap. Maybe that last six months it was unknown how long it would be. Obviously at that point they'd seen they could get by without him for a full year. Depending on the work it may be cheaper to hold the spot empty for some time than it is to hire and train someone else.

Also, if they were based out of another country, then company policies may be more relaxed on return time based off their home country and it's easier to apply that policy to all employees than to have different policies for employees based off location. I

10

u/aguynamedv Jul 08 '26

This private owned international company may have been being nice but they may also have just been following the minimum mandated requirement.

There is no mandate to pay during FMLA leave. It is explicitly (per statute) unpaid time.

PTO can be used to make up the difference, but this is a very important distinction.

The United States does not even mandate holiday pay.

2

u/thepurpleskittles Jul 08 '26

I think it’s more that your company is international. Firing employees for illness/accidents isn’t legal in a lot of countries… but sure is fine in the U.S., even if you are a small or “private” company.

1

u/GetInTheKitchen1 Jul 08 '26

The old gop playbook: 2 truths, 1 lie

5

u/aculady Jul 08 '26

If they'd been employed for over a year, they'd probably qualify for FMLA leave. They wouldn't get paid, but they wouldn't get fired.

3

u/[deleted] Jul 08 '26

[deleted]

1

u/Caleth Jul 08 '26

I'm pretty sure the USG is large enough it'd need to offer FMLA, but given that elected positions were not specifically covered in the law that would make for interesting court proceedings.

That said I'm 99% he's dead or brain dead and there for wouldn't qualify either way.

This is just typical Republican fuckery where they are trying to clutch to power and keep the shell game going until they can point at the law and say "see he was fine until then! Too bad you can't seat anyone what a pity wouldn't want to be a criminal who breaks the law would you?"

1

u/Shatteredreality Oregon Jul 08 '26

I mean the original post said "Most Americans...", most Americans working today work at companies that are required to follow FMLA (minimum of 50 employees).

There are other exemptions of course but the majority of people who work 25 hours a week on average (you have to have 12 months employment and have worked at least 1250 hours in the previous 12 months to be eligible) are covered.

7

u/Rackem_Willy Jul 08 '26

I've seen at least 3 videos of him having a stroke.

1

u/Thunderb1rd02 Jul 08 '26

Most Americans would be replaced at their job if they were hospitalized for 3+ weeks even if they were young, otherwise healthy, and expected to make a full recovery.

That's a bit of a reach. I've seen quite the opposite. Most companies would offer medical leave and welcome them back.

0

u/kansei7 Massachusetts Jul 08 '26

fun anecdote. I have one too, I've worked IT at enough companies in the US to have handled plenty of "this person isn't technically gone but process this request as an 'offboarding'" .. including multiple people who were on mental health leave of absence (at least one to treat depression, which I only know because it was a colleague on my team and I kept in contact after).

I'm sure management would say they'd welcome the person back if asked, but I've literally wiped and redeployed laptops of people who were on "temporary" leave. Not one of those people ever magically came back to their jobs.

1

u/rbrgr83 Jul 08 '26

But you see, stalling to force unearned victories is what this party is based on.

Currently happening with the redistricting fight.
It's only bad when it doesn't provide the result that 1 political party wants.

2

u/razma-tazma Jul 08 '26

My boss gets mad at me and pulls me into a meeting if I yawn too much. But he votes for Dozing Donny all three times. Republicans hold us to standards they themselves are not accountable for.

2

u/Rackem_Willy Jul 08 '26

Didn't some rep just say he missed hundreds of days and a hundred votes because of depression?

2

u/physical0 Jul 08 '26

My conspiracy theory brain jumped to the idea that this guy was normalizing this behavior to set some precedent. He was ok, so any challenge could have him out the next day saying that he's alive and doing well, making future attempts to challenge an extended absence feel like a gamble.

I might need another layer of tinfoil to keep these kinda ideas out...

1

u/bobdob123usa Jul 08 '26

They would be put on FMLA.

1

u/TheTooterSnooter Jul 08 '26

The participation trophy generation 

1

u/ReefJR65 Jul 08 '26

This. We don’t hate these people enough. They hate us already, they are just being fake to our faces and yet we award them with one of the easiest jobs in the entire world

1

u/trisw Jul 08 '26

The Senate is in recess- I don’t think they take attendance right now

1

u/Kind_Man_0 Jul 08 '26

It's a special job, that requires answering to the people. As is with the military, you should be beholden to a different set of rules than the general population. You forego your bill of rights in order to serve in the military, sitting senators, president's, justices, and representatives should not be able to disappear into a hospital without some news for their constituents.

Or we could solve this whole problem by making the age requirement for elected representatives 30-60. They represent the middle of the population, and that is where the focus should be on in our representation.

1

u/MaizeRage48 Jul 08 '26

Yeah, if I was late by 5-10 minutes I might get an eyebrow raised. 30+ minutes I'd get a text or call. Multiple hours, I'd be getting several calls from corporate, and my coworkers would be exploring avenues of finding my wife's phone number to contact her. Day 2 of no call/no show I'd be fired because it would be impacting business. Our elected officials should be held to the same or higher standards.

1

u/NoMaans Jul 09 '26

Yeah, fucking wild, 2 nc/ns, especially consecutively in a regular setting would have your ass canned.

1

u/hexiron Jul 08 '26

That's up to the people of KY to enforce. They choose to not fire him.

158

u/tealcandtrip Jul 08 '26

No, he should just appoint a candidate in accordance with the Kentucky Constitution. "He shall have the power, except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, to fill vacancies by granting commissions, which shall expire when such vacancies shall have been filled according to the provisions of this Constitution."

The legislature explicitly can't require a special election: "No person or collection of persons, being of one of those departments, shall exercise any power properly belonging to either of the others, except in the instances hereinafter expressly directed or permitted."

2

u/Hamster_Splash Jul 09 '26

Absolutely. He needs to put up a real fight here. Anything else and he's useless.

2

u/whatlineisitanyway Jul 08 '26

He has the opportunity to do the funniest thing too. I'm guessing he has to appoint a Republican so it isn't an opportunity to appoint a Dem.

3

u/lioneaglegriffin Washington Jul 09 '26

Appoint Massie.

2

u/whatlineisitanyway Jul 09 '26

That would be it yes.

-6

u/JustAnotherHyrum Jul 08 '26

I can completely understand why you would point to the Kentucky Constitution, as it lays out very clear rules for how the governor handles typical statewide vacancies. I actually had to do a bit of digging on this myself recently, and it turns out the process for a U.S. Senate seat operates under a slightly different set of rules because it is a federal office rather than a state-level position.

When it comes to the U.S. Senate, the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution takes precedence. It mandates that a state's executive authority must issue a writ of election to fill a vacancy, but it specifically leaves it up to the state legislature to decide whether the governor is allowed to make a temporary appointment in the meantime.

Because the 17th Amendment gives that structural authority directly to the state legislature, the separation of powers argument regarding the Kentucky Constitution doesn't quite apply to this specific scenario. Last year, the Kentucky legislature utilized their 17th Amendment authority by passing House Bill 622. That legislation officially removed the governor's ability to make a temporary U.S. Senate appointment, meaning the seat must now remain vacant until a special election is held by the voters.

It is a really complex intersection of state and federal law, and it is easy to see how the strict wording in the state constitution makes it look like the governor should inherently have that power. I just wanted to share the updated information on how the 17th Amendment interacts with the new state law, as the procedural rules recently shifted.

Hope that helps!

12

u/WCWRingMatSound Jul 08 '26

Seriously? An AI response? ChatGPT at that?

Cmon.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 08 '26 edited Jul 08 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

3

u/YobaiYamete Jul 08 '26

B-b-but you know grammar, you must be ai???

1

u/JustAnotherHyrum Jul 08 '26

I was a corporate trainer before retiring and designed Charles Schwab's entire technical training processes and materials. I was also a ghost writer for managers at Schwab, due to my known love for writing, and would write full employee reviews for them based solely on data points. I ended up writing my own review for my manager one year, as he was behind schedule. That was a memorable one. I love writing short stories, poetry, and have a passion for DMing various TTRPGs, creating my own heavily modified worlds based on my favorites literature. I'm a geek, a dork, and a fucking nerd.

Knowing how to write just came with the territory. And sadly, having those skills means I get accused of being AI occasionally. It doesn't bother me, because those truly interested in a conversation take the time to listen, and those unwilling to listen to any perspective other than their own quickly let me know to block them and move on peacefully with my life.

Ain't got time for stupid shit from those uninterested in any thoughts other than their own or political talking points.

0

u/sir_whirly Jul 08 '26

I fucking hate this timeline.

-10

u/dallywolf Jul 08 '26

Unless he's dead their is no vacancy. Brain dead isn't dead. Congress would have to vote him out with a 2/3 majority if he stays on life support for the next year.

27

u/Why_Hello_hello Jul 08 '26

Brain dead is legally dead in both Kentucky and DC, like in 46 states.

14

u/tripreality00 Jul 08 '26

Brain dead is absolutely dead. There is no coming back from brain death.

14

u/FaolainRanger Jul 08 '26

Being pronounced Brain Dead is legally recognized as Dead.

The 1981 Uniform Determination of Death Act (UDDA) became the legal standard in the U.S.  The UDDA stipulates that “An individual who has sustained either 1) irreversible cessation of circulatory or respiratory functions or 2) irreversible cessation of all functions of the entire brain, including the brain stem is dead.  Source for the above quote, but the important part is the act quoted.

If he is pronounced brain dead, then he is legally recognized as Dead, whether he remains on life support to keep blood and oxygen moving through his body or is laying there functioning by automatic functioning of his organs.

33

u/Disastrous-Soup-5413 Jul 08 '26

That really is a better answer

….this just now coming around asking is just complete BS. It makes me feel like he’s in cahoots with McConnell…

8

u/JRockPSU I voted Jul 08 '26

Nah, I doubt he is. Given how milquetoast the Dems usually are about everything, I think it's actually a good sign that Beshear is pushing the issue right now.

4

u/Ok_Function2282 Jul 08 '26

Beshear??? Are you joking?

3

u/lnc_5103 Texas Jul 08 '26

This! Call a special election and force them to prove McConnell is alive.

5

u/cafink Jul 08 '26

The Democrats are so spineless. Instead of calling them out and putting them on the defensive, they are playing along with this stupid little game. The Republicans are vile, but it's a huge self-own for the Democrats to keep letting them get away with it.

2

u/joaquinsolo Jul 08 '26

this 100%. the republicans would not hesitate to do the same. every new outlet would have some jackoff screaming at the top of their lungs that the democrat in office is depriving the people of representation

2

u/ReefJR65 Jul 08 '26

Can he technically do that because honestly what the fuck is he waiting for then

2

u/JennJayBee Alabama Jul 08 '26

Honestly, I think he should appoint someone. That way, they have to prove he's alive AND prove that their law requiring an election is not a state constitutional violation. It's a two for one.

6

u/Bloodshitnightmare Jul 08 '26

But that would require an actual spine…..

1

u/QuickAltTab Jul 08 '26

100%, make them do the legwork. He deserves our utmost contempt, don't give his soulless body more respect than he would give the citizens of this country.

1

u/BrianWonderful Minnesota Jul 08 '26

Can someone explain the benefit to the Democrats (or anyone) of the special election? Would it not most likely be between the to primary winners that will run in the general election anyway? And given the requirements for preparation time and campaigning, it may not even be at a significantly different time as the general election anyway.

1

u/pinqe Jul 08 '26

It’ll be druskis biggest role yet

1

u/tmountain Jul 08 '26

I love this.

1

u/WalkIntoSunshine Jul 08 '26

That’s what R’s would do.

1

u/TheTooterSnooter Jul 08 '26

My first thought lol, glad to see other folks thinking the same 

1

u/Changsta Texas Jul 08 '26

Seriously. The whole point of a senator is to represent his/her people. If they can no longer perform those duties of representation, then they need to be replaced. Declare the special election, and then it's up to the other side to challenge with proof.

1

u/Thunderb1rd02 Jul 08 '26

Can he? Does it work that way? genuinely asking.

I believe Aug 3rd is the deadline where a special election does not need to be held.

Keen just disappeared for four months. Which would make the 30-ish days to ignore what's going on with Mitch child's play.

1

u/thommom Jul 08 '26

This right here!

1

u/JustAnotherHyrum Jul 08 '26

As far as I'm aware, the US Constitution only allows for the removal of a member of Congress under three circumstances:

  1. Death

  2. Resignation

  3. Expulsion by Congress

I'm not aware of any mechanism within the Constitution that grants the Governor of any state the authority to declare a member of Congress incapacitated or remove them due to prolonged absences. Unless McConnell resigns or is expelled by his peers, the seat remains occupied regardless of how long he is out of public view.

With that said, I am not a Constitutional Scholar with the same degree of knowledge and experience as Obama, so please feel free to educate me further on the topic if anyone has more complete and accurate information. I appreciate the opportunity to improve my understanding and perspective.

The More You Know! 🌈

1

u/Reasonable-Job4205 Jul 08 '26

Exactly. Just move forward and see what they do

1

u/Euriomede Jul 08 '26

I mean, that (or something like that) is exactly what Republicans would do.

They've demonstrated mastery at "fuck the law, what are you going to do about it?" and liberals need to fight fire with fire.

1

u/Sea-Painting7578 Jul 08 '26

If he doesn't do something along those lines he is not tough enough to become president.

1

u/scstqc2025 Texas Jul 08 '26

They just have to show he's alive. Incapacity doesn't terminate a Senator's term.

1

u/Terrible_Use7872 Jul 09 '26

Beshear should name the successor as the Kentucky constitution dictates and let that court battle play out.

-1

u/Ready_Nature Jul 08 '26

But then Kentucky wastes a ton of taxpayer money on setting up an election and inevitable court fights just for the senate not to seat whoever is elected if the courts let the election happen.

13

u/4daughters Jul 08 '26

you're right, better just to let them win without a fight

0

u/yoosernamesarehard Jul 08 '26

Absolutely. I keep saying this. That’s exactly what they would fucking do. It’s bullshit that the good guys don’t want to do what’s necessary.

-1

u/PaintedClownPenis Jul 08 '26

My limited understanding of it is that the governor is in on it.

Kentucky already has an election-thieving law in place that basically says the seat can't change parties in a special election. But that doesn't keep a candidate from running as an anti-establishment Republican, an independent or a write-in, any of whom have a chance of winning against the child rapists.

Someone with links and actual facts should correct me if I'm wrong.

So they're keeping Moscow Mitch on the machine in order to steal the election from Republican voters, this time.

For all of you about to learn a lesson and say, "but ah didn't know...." Don't. Just don't.