WASHINGTON – Senate Republicans' three-month headache about Mitch McConnell's health seems to be over – at least for now.
In the days since the Kentucky lawmaker's return to the Capitol, they've defended him in the halls and expressed gratitude that his condition has improved. A fall in June, followed by a bout of pneumonia, kept the 84-year-old off the job for much of the summer and complicated the voting math for Senate Republicans on key legislation.
On his way back into the Senate chamber on the night of Monday, Sept. 14, he joked with reporters about admittedly dodging their questions since he'd been gone. Sitting in a wheelchair with visibly bruised hands, he resolved that it was "time to get back to work" and "finish the job for this Congress."
He isn't running for reelection and will end his more than 40-year Senate tenure by January.
Sen. Thom Tillis, R-North Carolina, who's served in the Senate with McConnell for more than a decade and will also retire next year, said he had a "great conversation" with him on Thursday. It was "classic Mitch," Tillis told USA TODAY.
"I spent 20 seconds asking him how he's doing, and he goes right into preserving the filibuster, and who we have to look ahead to do it as we leave, and Ukraine," Tillis said.
McConnell has been a vocal proponent of maintaining U.S. military and diplomatic support for Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia, as well as shielding the filibuster, the 60-vote threshold in the Senate that he says encourages bipartisanship, from President Donald Trump's campaign to eliminate it.
His reemergence in the Capitol took the internet by storm. One moment in particular stood out: During a meeting of the Senate Agriculture Committee to vote on the farm bill, it appeared to some onlookers as though McConnell voted incorrectly, raising more questions about his mental state.
When McConnell voted yes, Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, leaned over and said something to him. But Hoeven told USA TODAY he wasn't correcting McConnell – he himself wasn't sure about whether they were taking a more procedural vote or voting on final passage of the bill out of committee.
"He voted, and he voted correctly," Hoeven said. "He was there. He was present. He got it right."
Hoeven and other Senate Republicans said they were happy to have McConnell back. The Senate will be in session for another two weeks before going on recess for more than a month until after the midterm elections in November.
"I haven't had a chance to run into him," Rand Paul, McConnell's Kentucky counterpart in the Senate, told USA TODAY. "But I'm glad he's back and glad he's doing better."
Zachary Schermele is the congressional correspondent for USA TODAY. Reach him by email at zschermele@usatoday.com and on Signal @zachschermele.02. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why one Senate Republican says 'classic Mitch' has returned
