Source: CNN
Emergency responders took Sen. Mitch McConnell to an ambulance on a stretcher after being called to his home last month for a report of an unconscious person, according to new video of the incident and an eyewitness account.
A neighbor of McConnell told CNN that they opened their door to find commotion outside their home at around 8:30 a.m. on June 14, with two ambulances a fire truck and Capitol Police officers blocking the entire street.
Videos taken by the neighbor show emergency responders wheeling a person on a stretcher toward an ambulance. The videos are shot from some distance, and the face of the person is not visible. Once in the ambulance, the person’s lower legs appear to be covered by an orange blanket, but feet are visible.
The neighbor said they asked officers what was going on, and the officers responded that there had been a “medical emergency.” But when the neighbor inquired if McConnell was having a medical emergency, officers said they would block the street for anybody. The neighbor said they learned from another eyewitness who saw the individual’s face that the person on the stretcher was McConnell and he was not wearing an oxygen mask.
The video and the neighbor’s account have not been previously reported. They offer new details about the circumstances of McConnell’s hospitalization, which has been shrouded in mystery. When the incident first occurred, his spokesperson only said that McConnell was “admitted to the hospital this morning” and was “receiving excellent care.”
Weeks later, McConnell’s team has still not disclosed what prompted the senator to be taken to the hospital, nor have they disclosed specific details of his condition. And while friends and former colleagues have told reporters they have talked to McConnell in recent days, they too, have not offered any details about his health.
A spokesperson for McConnell declined to comment.
The neighbor who spoke to CNN said they saw emergency responders bring the person on the stretcher out from McConnell’s residence about 30 minutes after first noticing emergency vehicles blocking the street. The neighbor said they were taken aback by the person’s feet being uncovered in the video. McConnell’s residence, the address of which CNN corroborated with public records, is visible in the video, which was shot the day his team has said he was hospitalized.
“He’s in a stretcher, and he’s in some sort like orange foam looking blanket type thing,” the neighbor said. The neighbor said they looked at McConnell’s feet, which were uncovered and — in a brief glimpse — were “not moving.”
The neighbor said while they did not see McConnell’s face, others on the block did.
“One of my neighbors is like, ‘Oh yeah, it’s Mitch, I saw his face,’” the neighbor recounted to CNN.
An EMS audio recording published by an independent journalist indicated that the emergency responders were called to McConnell’s Washington, DC, home for an “unconscious” person for a “cardiac arrest,” and someone is heard saying, “CPR in progress.”
The neighbor said emergency responders worked quickly – but they did not seem panicked.
“In a situation where perhaps time is of the essence, there seems to be a little bit more urgency, but there was no urgency here,” the neighbor told CNN.
When the emergency vehicles left the street, the neighbor said their sirens were not on.
McConnell’s lengthy hospitalization has sparked significant speculation online about his condition. Some high-profile Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune, put out statements saying they have recently spoken with McConnell. CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings told CNN’s Kasie Hunt on “The Arena” that he talked with McConnell on the phone Tuesday and his “voice sounded strong,” and McConnell was feeling OK — obviously well enough to call me on the phone.”