Former Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, 84, experienced a concerning moment during a Capitol Hill hearing on Tuesday, which has sparked worries about his health and even drew criticism from former President Donald Trump directed at McConnell’s staff.
The Republican senator from Kentucky, who will not be running for reelection this term, attempted to conclude a hearing with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth before several of his colleagues had the opportunity to pose their initial questions.
Robert Karem, a staff member of the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Defense Subcommittee, intervened to inform McConnell that Democratic Senators Tammy Baldwin from Wisconsin and Jeanne Shaheen from New Hampshire, along with Republican Senator John Kennedy from Louisiana, still needed to ask their questions. The session continued for an additional 30 minutes following Karem’s interruption.
Interestingly, Trump, despite his historical disagreements with McConnell, took to social media to criticize Karem. In a post, he defended McConnell, expressing his disapproval of how the situation was handled.
“The guy who approached Mitch McConnell today when McConnell mistakenly thought the hearing was over, and then whispered for him to introduce some other people, all Democrats, which made Mitch look foolish and completely out of it, should be immediately fired!” Trump stated on Truth Social.
He further explained, “This wasn’t a case of Mitch being confused; he just didn’t understand why he was asked to do something when it was already too late, and people were getting ready to leave—they wanted to go home.”
‘His name is Robert Karem, he is a Never Trumper, and was grandstanding — trying to show how ‘important’ he was,’ the president noted on X, adding that Karem had ‘tremendous’ support from Democrats.
Trump also accused Karem of being the reason McConnell has not backed the Save America Act, a piece of legislation focusing on voter ID, before concluding his Truth Social post with a call to action, ‘Fire The Bum!’
Senator Mitch McConnell questions Pete Hegseth on Capitol Hill
US President Donald Trump during a law enforcement leaders dinner, celebrating the start of National Police Week, in the Rose Garden at The White House in Washington DC, on Monday, May 11, 2026
McConnell’s health has been a growing source of concern on Capitol Hill in recent years
Karem has worked for McConnell at various points in his career, and served in Trump’s first administration as both Acting Under Secretary and Assistant Secretary in the Department of Defense, per Legistorm.
In 2015 and 2016, he was also a Foreign Policy Adviser to Jeb Bush, working on both his exploratory committee and presidential campaign.
McConnell’s health has been a source of growing concern in recent years.
A fall last February left him reliant on a wheelchair and an aide to navigate the Capitol hallways, and he suffered a further fall in December 2024, spraining his wrist.
He has also endured several on-camera ‘freezing’ episodes, most notably in August 2023, when he stood motionless for 30 seconds after being asked whether he would seek re-election in Kentucky, just weeks after abruptly halting mid-sentence at a press conference.
The then-81-year-old gave no response when pressed on his political future.
He has since announced he will not run for re-election.
The longest-serving GOP Senate leader, McConnell first entered the Senate in 1985. He has long drawn the ire of Donald Trump and his MAGA supporters following a years-long feud.
His wife, Elaine Chao, served as Secretary of Transportation for most of Trump’s first term, but resigned in the wake of the January 6, 2021 Capitol attack.
In 2024, McConnell announced he would step down as Republican leader, ending an era that stretched back to 2007, clearing the way for John Thune to take the helm.
His retirement from the Senate has opened up his Kentucky seat, with several Republicans vying in the primary to succeed him next Tuesday, May 19.
