(Headline USA) GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley mocked the U.S. Senate as “the most privileged nursing home in the country” after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., froze during a press conference.
The McConnell episode was the second in the past several weeks in which he has unexpectedly shut down in the midst of a conversation or question.
“It’s sad,” Haley told Fox News. “No one should feel good about seeing that any more than we should feel good about seeing Dianne Feinstein, any more than we should feel good about a lot of what’s happening or seeing Joe Biden’s decline.”
Haley called on McConnell to retire.
“What I will say is, right now, the Senate is the most privileged nursing home in the country,” Haley added. “I mean, Mitch McConnell has done some great things and he deserves credit. But you have to know when to leave.”
She pointed to recent polls that show a majority of Americans are concerned with the old age of politicians, including President Joe Biden.
“These are people making decisions on our national security. They’re making decisions on our economy, on the border. We need to know they’re at the top of their game,” she said.
McConnell’s office claimed on Wednesday he would resume his “schedule as planned” after consulting with a physician.
“I have consulted with Leader McConnell and conferred with his neurology team,” Congress’s attending physician Brian Monahan said in a statement. “After evaluating yesterday’s incident, I have informed Leader McConnell that he is medically clear to continue with his schedule as planned.”
However, several Senate Republicans appear to agree with Haley that it’s time for McConnell to step down. Sources told Politico this week that a faction of GOP rank-and-file members is quietly convening an emergency meeting to force McConnell out of leadership.
